


Once Was Lost

by ToxicAngel13



Category: NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles
Genre: Alive!Kate, Amnesia, Coma, M/M, Perceived Major Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-06-05
Updated: 2014-09-03
Packaged: 2017-12-14 00:59:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 35,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/830871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToxicAngel13/pseuds/ToxicAngel13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A glint of light, a change in motion. Two very small things noticed leads to a very different ending.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Change in Lighting Does Wonders

**Author's Note:**

> Alright Ladies and Gents. I do Not own the characters I use. They will be returned promptly, and thoroughly cleaned. That being said I give you not a story dragged from my archives, but one hot off the presses. A Plot bunny snuck into my bed and bit at me until i started writing... And writing. The Muse is strong in this one, and i haven't even made it to the good parts yet ((The Sex)). 
> 
> The rating will go up when i make it there, but until then, here we go!

                Anthony DiNozzo was the quintessential playboy, the man with never ending jokes on hand, some sexist and some just aimed at breaking the mood. He always had a movie quote and he was always there for you when you needed him to be. Except when he wasn’t, although that hadn’t been his fault, not really- he hadn’t chosen to die. Or at least that’s what Kate told herself as they watched the closed casket as the priest spoke. In the end, through all the shit he gave her, and she gave right back he’d had her back. She should have never let her guard down after getting hit in the vest, and even though it looked Like Tony had too he’d been the first one to react, to see something off with their surroundings. And he’d been the one to bleed out in her arms, as she demanded he stay alive. He’d died on the way to the hospital, passed out from blood loss with no quip on his dying lips.

                She’d never forget getting to the hospital and being informed of his passing. Nor of the look on Gibb’s face when he realized Tony was gone. She didn’t think anything had happened between the two men, but the tension in the air had been so thick you could taste it. And Tony had died without knowing. Gibbs forced them all to concentrate on finding Ari, the man who had killed Tony trying to kill her. The man who was still after Gibb’s team and the people he had known. When it was all said and done they hadn’t even got to say their good byes. Tony’s father, someone that Tony never mentioned except to make sure they knew they didn’t get along, swooped in with expensive lawyers and everything taking care of his son’s affairs and making sure they didn’t come near.

                Kate thought she hated him a little, as she remembered Tony gasping in her arms as he lay dying, how Gibbs had shut himself down to the world, and how Abby couldn’t stop crying. They would never have the closure of saying their personal goodbyes because of him, not face to face anyway. DiNozzo Senior had made it clear that they were to blame for his son’s death, and if he’d been able to he would have barred them from his funeral.

                She closed her eyes as the funeral ended. No matter how many times she buried someone she knew, someone she thought of as friend, colleague, of family, it never got any easier. She’d never be able to tell Tony that she really didn’t mind his childish humor or behavior. How much that attitude had helped during a particularly hard case. How much she cared for him, not in the sense of a lover, but in the way that he’d become like family to her. Abby was sobbing, her face buried in Gibbs’ chest as his arms wrapped around her. Gibb’s eyes were dead. McGee was heading to his car already, his steps heavy and his face angry. There was so much that would be left unsaid, and all because she had been stupid and let her guard down. It was her fault he was gone.

* * *

 

                   That night, after seeing the casket containing one of his best agents lowered into the ground Leroy Jethro Gibbs sat in his basement drinking. The boat he’d been making was trashed, he’d taken a  sledge hammer to it in his rage, and soon he’d build a new one. It wouldn’t be a Kelly or a Shannon this time. No he’d be building a boat to work out his pain of another’s death. He’d been talking to Kate, relieved she was alive when Tony had taken a leap, yelling as he did for Kate to get down. Then he’d heard the shot and seen the red blood blossom. From what he’d gotten out of the EMT’s as they loaded Tony the shot had hit an artery. He’d only made it to their arrival because of Kate pressing down and stemming the rapid blood loss. He hadn’t known it was that bad as he’d made sure to scan the horizon’s, wary of another shot. If he had he would have been right there. He would have given Tony a reason that he had to live, or what he hoped would have been a reason.

                    And there was the kicker to this story. He’d hidden behind his own rules for so long, ever since he’d bent them slightly by recruiting Tony because of his feelings when they had worked together in Baltimore. Those rules forbid him from acting on his feelings because Tony was under his command. He’d been afraid, of being rejected because DiNozzo sure as hell didn’t come across as the type who would accept a man into his bed, of letting himself love someone after his girls and Ex-wives, and he’d let himself pretend he didn’t love Tony. He had and now the other man was gone, and any chance that he might have returned his feelings were gone with him.

                   He slammed back the last of the bourbon in his  cup before filling it again. The gentle embrace of alcohol running through him, comforted him. Later he would deal with the fact that the man he loved from afar had been murdered, just like Kelly an Shannon. Right now he just wanted to forget everything, to pretend that he didn’t wish he’d been the one who was killed. Tony hadn’t deserved to die like that, but there was nothing he could change.

* * *

 

                    A Man looked at the hospital bed that lay covered in the darkness of night. He’d done a hell of a lot of things wrong in his child’s life, but this wasn’t going to be one of them. He’d protect his child this time, and while his child was in a coma they were especially vulnerable, exposed to whatever danger may be lurking in the dark world around them. A sneer covered his lips as he remembered the events of the day. He didn’t feel an ounce of guilt over his actions, and he likely wouldn’t. The Doctor’s couldn’t even tell him if his child would ever wake again.

                    No right now he was sure his actions were the right ones. Perhaps his child wouldn’t forgive him for the lengths he’d went through to assure himself of his safety, but he wasn’t a stranger to their anger. This time though, this time he wouldn’t have to feel guilty for being a bad father. For not putting his child first. He’d known from the minute he got the call what he had to do, and his friend’s words hammered it home. Even though his child’s attacker was dead, killed in revenge for what had happened, there was no guarantee he wasn’t working with others, that they wouldn’t come after his child in his weakened state. His friend had helped him convince the right people to do what they had done. Now he needed to be the grieving father, because officially his son was dead.

                   Anthony DiNozzo Senior stood up from his chair and laid a kiss over his son’s forehead. There was no response from the too still body of his normally animated child and even though he had expected there not to be he flinched. If Tony never woke up then the funeral he and the government had conducted wasn’t for nothing. He hoped one day it would be. Eli had apologized for his loss, had promised to pay for Tony’s bills indefinitely, and had started funding whatever he needed in his guilt over his son’s actions. Any other time that would have thrilled him, to finally have the money he needed for anything he wanted. Now the money seemed offensive, the fact he had it because his son had almost died, had died three times on the operated table and twice in the ambulance. He’d give it up for a chance to hear Tony’s voice again, to hear him laugh to see him smile. Hell he’d pay to have his son open his eyes and glare at him, his own green eyes full of remembered disappointments. Tony had every reason to have distanced himself, considering his track record an all. But this time he was doing right by his son.

                   Tony would live, and one day he would wake up. Anthony had be remember that because he wouldn’t be able to handle it if it didn’t happen. Pretending Tony was dead was hard enough, he didn’t want it to become reality. When Tony woke up he’d be pissed he was officially dead, but Anthony would handle that when that day come. For now his son was safe, where he could recover and stay alive. That was all the father needed to ease his mind. He stood up straight and shoved his hands in his pockets. He had business to take care of, including making sure all of his son’s assets were safe for when he woke. The boy had a sharp mind for investments, better than his. He had a tidy little fortune of his own, and before this Anthony might have been a little upset that Tony was prospering when he was floundering. All he felt now was pride, and the sick sense of how much he’d fucked up.

                   “I’ll see you in a week Kiddo. You just work on waking yourself up. I’m looking forward to the reaming you’ll give me for killing you off.” He joked, before turning and leaving. It had been two weeks since Tony had been shot. If he was truthful with himself the chances of him ever waking up again were getting slimmer by the day. And even if he woke up his son might not be the same man as before he had died five times. The doctors were worried about brain damage- yet another reason that he was glad he’d taken the actions that he had. As he left the hospital he knew he’d be back, every week until his son was back with him. He couldn’t afford to let Tony down ever again, and he intended on keeping this one promise, unlike the times before when he had failed him.


	2. Changing Tides and Talking to the Dead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter One was my shortest one in this story so far, so i thought i'd throw in chapter two for the night. If i get reviews and such I'll post more... Hint hint. Oh and please tell my plot bunnies to stop biting.... My hands hurt...

               Ziva David looked at her new… team closely. The dossiers her father had given her on them hadn’t prepared her for how much Tony DiNozzo’s ‘death’ would affect them. Psychologically all of them had changed. Gibbs’- the man her brother had been trying to hurt, and she’d killed him for, was a man on auto pilot. The death of his Senior Field Agent had hit him harder than she would have expected. All three of the surviving members of his team kept a photo of DiNozzo on their desks, but when the eldest looked at his there was something in his eyes. A regret that Ziva recognize from her father’s face when he looked at her mother’s photo. It was obvious to her that the man she worked under had loved DiNozzo, and the part of her that still felt winced a little.

               When it came out that DiNozzo was alive the man before her would kill to get him back. She didn’t know how her father expected to hide his involvement, or how he had approved of his friend’s plan. She knew her father was paying for the comatose man’s private hospital out of guilt for her brother’s actions, and that he was paying his friend’s bills now too- again out of guilt. It made no sense to her, surely once the man who lay in a coma woke he’d find his way back to the people who were morning him, so why hide the fact he lived. But she was a good soldier, these people would not find out from her of the deception they were living under. She had no ties to them.

                She looked away from Gibbs before he noticed her stare and looked over to the other woman on her team. Kate. The file had said she was a friendly woman  who had worked in the Secret service. She didn’t seem too friendly to Ziva, but then again it had been her brother who had caused them so much pain. The other woman barely spoke to her, and when she did it was a clipped tones that make it clear she wanted nothing to do with her. Caitlin Tod was not her fan and she never would be at this rate. She resented her presence and what she represented, a replacement for her fallen team mate.

                And then there was her male team mate. McGee. He was supposed to be a man with little self confidence, who stuck mostly to himself. Instead he was too a different person, one who was angry with the world- again Ziva thought it had to do with her brother ‘killing’ DiNozzo. He didn’t back down, and she’d seen him in the gym more often than not since she had come back from delivering her brother’s body to their homeland. He too did not try to engage her in any social activity. The phone rang and Gibbs answered, before barking at them to head out.

* * *

 

                Anthony sighed as he looked over his son’s wasting form. It had been two months and still his child showed no sign that he would be waking up any time soon. He sat down next to Tony’s bed, and took a limp hand in his. Hell he was doing better than he had in a long time financially, and not just because Eli was sending money his way, and his son couldn’t see it. He might never see it. Tony’s Doctor’s were becoming more and more certain that the coma was a permanent state for his son, though he was off the damn ventilators. His lungs had recovered enough from the trauma of blood loss and being perforated by a ricocheting sniper round to work on their own. And considering Tony had been recovering from the plague when he was shot that was a good sign.

              Or so Anthony told himself as he gathered his thoughts. The Doctors said talking to Tony might help, and even though he was pretty sure his son hated him he was damned well the only person he was going to get to hear that he knew. He squeezed the limp hand drawing himself from his dark thoughts of the people who should have protected his son. They were professionals who hadn’t noticed that they were still in danger. But his son had.

              “I’m not trying to make money off of this kiddo. I want to get that out of the way before I go on, just so you know. The asshole who shot you? Well he was one of my friend’s children and he didn’t take the news that said child tried killing you. The guy’s dead by the way. His sister got orders to take him out, and she did it before he took your old boss out too. So no worrying about them. They’re all alive and well. Eli’s paying your bills, and mine. I’m taking the money I get from him for my end and investing it with your firm.. They’re doing wonders with it. Who knows, maybe by the time you wake up I’ll even be able to pay you back everything I’ve smooched off of you in the past. I’m sorry about that.” He rumbled, speaking about everything he could think of. When he left two hours later it was with a sinking feeling that his son would never wake. Tony hadn’t reacted at all to his voice, and seeing his bright and bouncing child so still was getting to him in ways he couldn’t have imagined.

              Tony was never meant to be still. He’d never been before in his life, even when he was sick he tried moving around as much as his body would let him. He wasn’t supposed to be so silent either. As far back as Anthony could remember Tony had always been talking, babbling, and spouting off some obscure fact. The son he’d used, the one he loved was basically gone, and he was keeping his body alive with his actions. It was disturbing to think about. As he left he spared a thought to the people who he knew intellectually would have been by his side if they could have. He felt a stab of guilt over getting Eli to use his clout to have the government put him into hiding and inform the world of his death. He was denying Tony comfort from his friends by doing this and he knew it. But it wasn’t like his son could really care. He’d past caring 2 months ago.

* * *

 

              Gibbs stared out the window, the snow falling thickly onto the ground outside, covering everything in white and making it look like the world was pure. It had been six months since they lost Tony and Director Sheppard, Director Morrow’s replacement, had placed one Ziva David onto his team as a replacement for his SFA. The woman who had killed Tony’s murderer, her brother, was a good agent in the sense that she got the job done quickly and without fail. Not as well versed in English as one would hope, and naïve in was Tony never was, but her naivety provided a sort of relief, one that didn’t come close to Tony’s jokes, but helped.

               He noticed that his two other Agents hadn’t embraced her, even this long after Tony’s passing. Her abrupt arrival and placement in their team, combined with her relation to the man who had killed their friend wasn’t a good combination. And while he himself was doing everything he could not to accept her- because doing that would mean Tony was really gone forever, he could see the drawn lines. Lines that were not appropriate in their line of work. He’d talked to Kate about her behavior and the other woman had threatened to transfer if he tried forcing them to accept David. He knew the new McGee would follow. It seemed like all the work Tony had put into the other man to make him a stronger person had worked, the effects coming into play too late for Tony to see.

               “You would have loved the snow.” He spoke to Tony, like he did with his girls. “You were a big kid like that. I can imagine you running out there to mess up the dullness, and Ducky stopping you because of your lungs.” He stopped speaking as he remembered the plague. If Tony had listened to him then, he hadn’t died. And perhaps if he hadn’t listened to Tony, hadn’t brought him back before he was 100% he’d still be alive. He certainly wouldn’t have been on that roof to be shot. He closed his eyes. If the Plague hadn’t happened there was a chance Tony would have survived the shot too, or so he told himself. Either way he was responsible for Tony’s death.

              “I hope my girls are taking care of you up there DiNozzo. And Shannon, I know that me loving him too must have been a shock, but he didn’t know.” He muttered to himself, before pushing away from the window and heading to the basement. The Tony would be sea worthy by the summer at the pace he was going, if he kept up with it that is, and he was planning on using his vacation time to give him a taste of the water. He should have taken the real Tony out on one of the Kelly’s, but that was a chance long past. Letting Tony in like that would have made his walls crumble, and he would have told the other man how he felt. He knew it in his gut.

               “Damn it Tony. Why did you die?” He muttered, shaking himself out of his thoughts. Contemplating what ifs were going to drive him insane if he wasn’t careful. He couldn’t change the past now anymore than he could of when his girls were taken from him. This time he didn’t even have the comfort of having killed the man responsible- someone else had taken that privilege from him. He looked to the Tony and sighed, before picking up his sandpaper and getting to work smoothing out all of the rough patches. He lost himself in the motions.

* * *

 

               Timothy McGee looked over to the desk that had belonged to his friend, and now belong to a Mossad officer. The sister of the man who had tried killing Kate, but had gotten Tony instead. Ziva wasn’t in the office yet and he was thankful for that. He couldn’t bring himself to trust her, although he had tried in the seven months since Tony died if only for the sake of making the team run smoother. There was something about her that made him think she was hiding something, and with her connections that could never be a good thing.

               He hadn’t found anything in his computer searches that would justify his unease around her, but then again he didn’t really expect to. She was a trained assassin with connections so far high up that getting information about her was like pulling teeth. Needless to say the lack of information did nothing to ease his mind, if anything it put him even more on edge. He missed Tony more than ever these days though. The atmosphere of MCRT  was suffocating, and he knew with one joke Tony would have been able to fix it. Gibbs, well Gibbs was another story.

                When his boss wasn’t snapping he had this quiet air around him, and he stared off into space. It was the quite parts that scared Tim, he could deal with Gibbs snapping and demanding things but when he was quiet it was like he'd given up. Hell those days he was afraid to let the other man go home alone, almost certain that they’ get a call saying Gibbs was no longer among them. Something in the other man had broke when Tony died. Something in them all had broke. It was sad. They didn’t know how much Tony had met to them until it was too late. When he was alive he had this in your face quality that never let you forget he was there, or take anything to seriously and without him… Without him life was so much more haunting, the cases stuck like glue.

               He felt like he’d aged ten years in the seven months that had passed, and he wasn’t the only one. Abby had become a recluse, there was no loud music from her labs, nothing. She didn’t bounce around as much, or smile. It was like when Tony died the soul of their little family went with him. He sighed and looked away from the desk, his eyes falling on a picture of Tony. They all had different shots, his was a candid one that Tony had taken with a crime scene camera. He was hanging over Tim’s shoulder, smiling widely while Tim’s face was a mass of confusion and blindness. The flash had taken his sight for a couple of seconds and he remembered yelling at Tony for doing it. He’d give anything to have him to it again though. He wished that the last seven months had been a bad dream more than anything. He closed his eyes after a couple moments, trying to imagine what the other man would say about his mood. He could almost hear the sarcastic note in Tony’s voice as he told him to get over himself and bit back a smile. Tony wouldn’t want this, the morose atmosphere in light of his death.

              “It’s not right Tony. You shouldn’t have died, and you don’t get to tell me to cheer up. We all lost a good friend when you went away and that’s not something that’s going to change easily.” He finally replied to his imagined scolding. Sometimes it helped to think that he was still here, just out of sight and that he could hear him. He shook himself out of his daydream and pushed back from his chair. Obviously it was a slow day today, so he’d take a look at the cold cases. Sitting around and talking to Tony in the middle of the Bullpen wasn’t good.


	3. Faded Memories Coming Clear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, obviously this is being read. I have reviews, Kudo's and everything!!! I love you all! Enjoy my lovelies, the bunnies are still gnawing on me!

               Anthony looked at his son and sighed. Tony was awake, had been for about a month, but things weren’t like in the movies. He’d found out the hard was that a persistent vegetative state had its consequences.  The oxygen depravation Tony had gone through when his heart had stopped beating and his lungs were not working right, combined with the swelling his brain had experienced from the trauma had effects. Only time would tell if they were permanent though. Right now his son was smiling at him crookedly, and didn’t know he was his father.

               Tony couldn’t get up out of bed on his own currently, even with therapy his muscles had degenerated in his coma, and even if they hadn’t he didn’t have very good control over his movements. And his memory was shot. He didn’t remember anything of his life, and while the Doctors said he could recover those Anthony wasn’t so sure he wanted Tony to remember. While he was like this he enjoyed seeing him, he didn’t want to rush back to his job, he was safe. Still his boy had a long road to recovery ahead of him. He wouldn’t be out of the hospital for several months at least.

               “How are we doing today?” He asked, sitting down. Tony chuckled, coughing a little as the  actions irritated his still healing lungs.

               “Still have no idea who you are pops, so i'm still going out on a limb by trusting you when you say you're my father. I walked a little today in therapy, with bars, and braces. I feel like I should be somewhere though. Like there’s someone waiting and I need to hurry my crippled ass along in recovery to get back to them.” He spoke, his voice slow and steady, careful not to stumble over words or say the wrong thing. When he first woke up he couldn’t string sounds together, and while this wasn’t the normal hyperactive babble he’d know Anthony found himself immensely glad that he could hear his son’s voice again. He smiled though.

                “That’s good news. Soon you’ll be up running marathons.” He joke, ignoring Tony’s comment on his feelings. He was sure his son’s memory was trying to point him in the direction of NCIS even though it couldn’t surface and he didn't like it. “As for remembering me, that will come soon enough and then you’ll demand I leave.” He added, his tone still joking. Tony frowned, but didn’t comment on his words. He looked over to the bare wall and sighed instead.

                 “Can I have a TV in here? They have one in the rec room and I saw this awesome show. I couldn’t really keep up with it because of my memory right now, but I’d like to watch.” He asked, his lower lip coming out in a pout. Anthony resisted saying no. He could only come by once a week, and if something triggered Tony’s memories then he could find a way to contact his old co-worker’s before he was able to stop him. He resisted though, he wasn’t going to make Tony hate him, not this time around. Tony's amnesia was a second chance, one that he could use to be honest.

                “I’ll talk to the nurses station when I leave. So what’s going on besides finding your legs. I’ve been busy with work, and the Doctor’s do keep me appraised, but I want to hear it from you.” He asked leaning forward. Tony sighed, a smile finding it’s way onto his face as he looked around to see if his nurse was there.

                “Man-Hands was totally checking me out during my sponge bath. Not that having guy hands is bad or anything, but she could crush me with one boob.” He confided. Anthony bit back a laugh. No memory or not, his son was still the same. Although he wandered about the hands comment. It almost sounded like Tony wouldn't mind a guy oogling him. He wouldn’t have a problem with it, but it brought up Tony’s old Boss. The one who had pinned him to the wall when he demanded to see Tony’s body to say his goodbyes. Had there been something going on there? If so than Junior would seriously never forgive him if he got his memories back. Anthony pushed that out of his mind, falling into easy conversation with his son. It was dark outside when he left to go to his hotel.

* * *

 

                Tony- or so they told him his name was Tony, had been watching the news when it happened. He’d been awake for almost three months, could talk at a reasonably fast pace, although he didn’t know why that was important, and walked with a cane, but his memories were still stubbornly hiding, not matter how hard he tried to remember. Then he saw a report of an incident in Washington. His mind went blank as they showed a clip of the scene, and his eyes landed on a grey haired man helping a limping younger man to an ambulance. He fellt a stab of worry, like he knew the people he was seeing, and then it happened.

* * *

 

                                                                                                                        -Flash Back-

* * *

 

                 “You can’t die DiNozzo- that’s an order.” A man whispered into his ear, his breath hot on his flushed skin. He was in a hospital be under blue lights, and as he looked up at the man- Gibbs. Leroy Jethro Gibbs. He spotted an older male and a dark headed woman staring. The woman was crying. Gibbs tapped the side of his head in lieu of a head slap and Tony grinned at him, his heart racing although it hurt to breath.

                  “Got it boss.” He murmured, knowing that he would fight to live, just for Gibbs, and wishing that he had the courage to lean up and kiss the other man. But he couldn't. even if Gibbs didn't deck him in response to the advance he would never know if it was just a pity kiss. He didn't want to fuck up his friendship and working relationship with the other man just because he couldn't keep his feelings in check. He locked down the urge, before concentrating on himself. He had to get better, to beat this plauge

* * *

                                                                                                                          ~*~*~*~

* * *

 

                "Stop acting like a five year old DiNozzo and get to work. Gibbs wants this scene processed an hour ago." McGee growled as Tony flashed the comera in his face. Tony smirked, taking one more photo before going back to the crime scene. Probie was coming along quite nicely. When the computer geek had first started working with him he wouldn't have raised his voice like that. He gave himself a pat on the back mentally, but couldn't hide the smug feeling at his sucess.

                   "Get to work Tony- baiting Tim isn't worth pissing Gibbs off right now." Kate muttered, as she elbowed passed him. He winked at her and she hissed like an angry kitten. "Not going to happen- ever." she called over her shoulder, and Tony whistled. Today was a good day- pissing Kate and Tim off, he was on a roll. A slap landed on the back of his head as his speed didn't increase and he looked balefully at his boss, even though the brief contact sent shiveres through his body.

                   "Stop fooling around DiNozzo we have a murderer out there, and i'l like to tell the Petty Officer's husband who killed her soon." Gibbs growled, his voice doing all sorts of things that were not appropriate for thier surroundings to him. He grinned.

                   "On it Boss!" He promised, before picking up his pace, a bounce in his step. Although the day might rank up to the Petty Officer's worst ever he was feeling giddy with how well it was going. He could feel Kate's glare on his back as he worked, and he made sure to shoot her a grin, making her hiss again.

* * *

                                                                                                                                    ~*~*~*~

* * *

 

                    "So, did you or did you not go on a date last night Tony? I've got to say i'm not believing this whole playboy thing you have going on. You never get angry phone calls, and if you really were the love them and leave them type there definalty would be angry phone calls." Abby chirpped, sitting on the edge of her desk as he spun around in his chair. He froze at the question. He had been laying it on thick when it came to his tales of dating lately- mostly because he was finding it harder and harder to resist his feelings towards Gibbs, and it pissed Kate off to no end.

                    "I did." He replied. She snorted, leaning over and slapping the back of his head in a Gibbs like way. He pouted at her and she giggled.

                    "You didn't. I can tell, your like a man starving for physical contact. If you were having sex i'd be able to tell that too." She teased before frowning. "Are you having some sort of problem? Because if it's getting it up there's pills for that." She joked, then sqealed as he made a dive for her, making it off her desk and into her office. She locked the door and made faces at him through the clear glass. "Some one definatly needs to get laid out there." She sing songed.

                    "You're so mean to me Abby." He pouted from just beyond the door. She didn't come out though, and soon he had to leave to get back to work, his mind already plotting his revenge for her taunting.

* * *

 

                                                                                                              -End Flash Back-

* * *

 

                     Tony gasped as he shook himself out of the memories he’d been so desperate to get back. How in god’s name had he been able to forget them? Gibbs, Abby, Kate, Ducky. They must be going crazy. He’d been in here ten months. And awake three of them. And no one had been here except his father. He froze. His father had been almost religious in coming once a week, never missing a day. He’d seen him more in the last 3 months than he had in the last seven years. Something wasn’t right there. And he knew his team. They would be here if they knew he was awake. He thought back on the conversations he’d had with his father. Something wasn’t right.

                     He looked around his room for a phone, needing to call Gibbs at least to let him know where he was and that he was okay, only to freeze. There was no phone in his room, and he realized that he had no idea where he was. And it wasn’t like he could waltz out of here right now. He still couldn’t walk more than ten minutes with his cane before he had to rest for a while. He’d play this cool. He wouldn’t let daddy dearest find out he remembered, and he’d figure out where he was. And then, when he was more mobile, he’d leave. He hoped to God that his father hadn’t pulled anything stupid. He forced himself to turn away from the broadcast. His father seemed relived he didn’t remember his life, and if he wanted his plan to work he couldn’t be spotted watching his team on the news. He turned on a movie, one of his favorites and forced himself to zone out, planning his escape.

                  After a month and a half his father presented him with a laptop, seemingly convinced that his memory loss was permanent. With his new connection to the outside world he looked up himself- DiNozzo, not his mother’s maiden name in which he was registered under. What he found shocked him. Tony DiNozzo was six months shy of being dead a full year. He almost threw his laptop, because of all the senario’s that he had expected his father killing him off had not been one. He got up from his desk, no longer needing the cane to walk around as he paced. He was a little thin, but he was almost as good as new, a few things hanging around like a bad smell. First he had to leave, preferably without his father knowing immediately. Then he had to get in contact with Abby. Gibbs might not believe he was his SFA right away, but Abs would get him home. He packed some clothes and his laptop before looking at the window. He was on the ground floor, and the window had no alarms. Good enough. He opened the screen and slipped out, heading towards what he thought was town, paying no attention to his body as it protested to the quick concise movements that he had once been at home in making

                  He’d walked about fifteen minutes before he was given a ride by a helpful stranger, who informed him that he was in California. With that in mind, after being dropped off at an internet Café he sat down and pulled up his laptop. He logged onto his skype account before hitting Abby’s name. It went through, but she wasn’t looking at the camera yet. From his vantage she looked tired, and he could see pictures of himself plastering her wall. It almost made him smile, considering that was her habit when she missed someone. He didn’t smile though, because she looked thin, and she wasn’t wearing any make up. He hated his father more than ever just seeing what the other man’s actions had cause with having him declared dead. He cleared his throat and she looked up, her face paling even more as she looked at him. She swayed from her standing position and slumped into a chair, her mouth forming his name. She looked like she’d seen a ghost, which to her she had, was seeing.

                   “Tony?” She finally whispered, her voice full of disbelief. He smiled, shrugging and feeling awkward in his t-shirt and shorts. She closed her eyes, before opening them, blinking rapidly as tears started flowing and he wanted to be there, so he could hug her and promise everything would be alright. He didn’t like this situation at all, especially because his hands were tied when it came to comforting her.

                  “You’re dead Tony. I must be hallucinating. You were shot, and you bled out on Kate, and we buried you, and your father wouldn’t let us see you body and he tried stopping us from coming to your funeral. You’re dead. You can’t be on my computer.” She whined, her voice clogging as she babbled, fear and confusion clouding her eyes. He inhaled, before sighing and leaning foreword to get a better look at her. She jumped at his movement, looking like she expected him to come through her computer screen and he would have laughed, but he knew that right now wasn’t the right time or place for such things. Abby was close to full out bawling at the moment.

                  “I’m not dead Abby. I’m in Los Angeles, California. My asshole of a father visits me in the hospital once a week. I did get shot, I did bleed out, and from what my Doc’s tell me my right lung got damaged along with the artery being hit, an my clavicle shattering. I was in a coma for six months. I woke up, then couldn’t remember who I was, how to do anything, including walking. I didn’t remember you guys until a month and a half ago, but I was still in no form to leave the hospital to get a hold of any of you. My father had me checked in under my mother’s maiden name. I didn’t even know I was supposed to be dead until this morning when I left the hospital without anyone knowing and hitch hiked to this Café.” He explained concisely, like he was making a report of an undercover operation to Gibbs. As he spoke her face gained color and she leaned foreword, rapidly typing as she did. She froze as he mentioned leaving the hospital, the furious look on her face fading to worry as she looked over his face. She didn’t seem to like what she saw though as she frowned and Tony waited for her response.

                  “Stand up so I can look at you DiNozzo.” She ordered. He rolled his eyes, but followed her command and she tsked. “Lift your shirt.” She barked, and he chuckled, doing as she told him. She growled as she examined him from afar. The fear and disbelief had faded, leaving a fury that Tony was glad wasn’t directed at him and worry.

                  “Sit down. I have your location, and I’m booking a hotel across the street for you as we speak. They’ll have instructions not to ask for ID since I doubt you have any. Then I’m bringing Ducky down with me so I can make sure you can travel. I’d book the plane right now, but you don’t look like you can fly, and I don’t want to risk your health. You’re too thin, and it looks like a stiff wind could bring you down.” She said tersely, going back to typing. He sighed and looked at her. She was crying still, two trails steadily going down her face as she worked.

                  “Are you going to tell Gibbs, McGee, and Kate?” He asked quietly. She shook her head shortly.

                  “Not until we have you home safe and sound. If I tell Gibbs he’ll hunt down your father and we so don’t need him going to jail. With you here he’ll be more focused on getting you back to health and back to work. We’ve missed you so damned much, all of us. And undoing your father’s work of getting you declared dead will suck balls. You’re not allowed to die on us again. You understand that right?” She replied, her voice cracking. He didn’t respond as she picked up her phone and called Ducky. His father had made one hell of a mess for him to pick up after. Within moments he saw Ducky come into Abby’s office. The other man looked like he was feeling his age.

                  “What is it Abby? You sounded positively panicked on the phone. I had half the mind to call Gibbs down to calm you.” Ducky intoned. Tony couldn’t help the small laugh that those word’s produced, but Ducky didn’t notice, his focused solely on Abby, who was wringing her hands, obviously too upset to answer him. When it became apparent that she wasn’t going to speak Tony steeled himself, ready to respond for her.

                 “That would be my fault. Apparently being dead for almost a year and contacting someone does that. It’s almost like Inspector Clouseau in Revenge of the Pink Panther, where he’s almost killed and everyone assumes he is and he lets them think that. Only I didn’t have a choice in it. They lost me twice in the ambulance and three times on the table, and then apparently I went into a coma and stayed in one for six months. Then I was amnesiac three, and then when I finally remembered I had to wait until I was strong enough to break myself out of the hospital, and find out that I’m officially dead. Not as cool as it sounds by the way.” He babbled, even able to throw in a movie reference. He was out of breath as the last words past his lips though, and Abby was staring at him concerned as Ducky looked over. He swayed slightly, just as Abby had done and reached out, touching the computer screen. His hand was trembling as his eyes darted, presumably taking in his face.

                “Dear Lord. Anthony my dear boy. You’re alive. I should have known something was amiss when they did not let me examine your body.” He whispered his voice full of sorrow as he spoke. Abby hugged him, flashing Tony a smile.

                “We have to go and pick him up and bring him home. I have the tickets booked. He left the hospital without being cleared, so I can’t just book his tickets. I. I have his wallet from evidence, so we can fly him back with his ID” She whispered. Ducky seemed to gather himself and looked determinedly into the camera.

                 “Anthony- you’re to go to the room Abby has gotten you and rest, you look positively exhausted. Abby will have room service deliver meals ever four hours. We will be there in six hours at the most. If I find you fit for air travel we will spend the night, and then go home. If not then we will book a train and head home tonight.” He informed him briskly. Tony smiled brittley, his heart finally slowing down.

                 “I knew I could count on you guys.” He replied, his voice breaking, and tears building as everything hit him. He just wanted to be back in DC, with his family. Abby looked panicked.

                 “Don’t cry Tony, we’ll have you home in no time, and then you’ll get sick of us. I promise we’ll mother hen you to death, well not to death. We’ll just annoy you and I don’t think Boss man will even let you go to the bathroom on your own and Kate and McGee will be so happy. Although Kate might call in favors and make sure your dad is found in a gutter because of what he did. And no one will blame you because you were in a coma.” She babbled. He closed his eyes and she sighed. “I’m faxing the hotel a copy of your ID. You’ll have a meal waiting for you. Try and get some rest before we get there?” She asked. He nodded. “We love you Tony.” She murmured, before shutting down the link. Tony sighed before packing up and heading to the hotel Abby had told him to. One mention of his name had him being escorted to a posh and obviously expensive room.

                  “Ms. Scuito asked that you chose a meal as soon as you checked in Mr. DiNozzo. After that she has scheduled you for a fitting, as she explained your clothing was lost during your flight and all you have is your carry on.” His guide informed him, handing over a room service menu. He ordered the biggest steak they had and some beer in a moment of indulgence. He hadn’t had either in almost a year after all.  Before his meal came the Tailor did. And he had orders to take measurements for four suits. Abby was trying to pamper him before he even got there. His meal was delivered just as the man finished taking his measurements. And then finally he was able to relax. He put on a movie as he sat down in a plush chair and reached for his meal. He ate quickly enough, polishing off his beer while he did, before making his way to the bed, the movie still playing. When he laid down he was out in moments, the adrenaline from his run and talking to his family wearing off, leaving him bone exhausted.


	4. Reunions On High and Living Discoveries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I have all these Chapters typed... And guess what? I'm going to stretch this out- no mass postings on this baby. The Bunny's are trying to make my hands fall off, i keep telling them to stop, if my hands break then i can't continue ever... but they don't listen to well.
> 
> Read and Enjoy- Reviews and Kudo's seem to feed the bunnies, but i enjoy them too!

               Abigail Scuito had only her purse and its contents with her as she boarded the plane, she hadn't wanted to delay heading to Tony any longer than they had to- it would be a five hour flight after all. It had taken their government ID’s to get them on this soon a departure, but it was worth it. Her mind still hadn’t absorbed the fact that they were going to bring Tony home. That Tony was alive, had gone through being in a coma and recovering from it all alone, just because his father was being an asshole and had faked his death. She was going to have some very strong words for the man. It had been bad enough when he had laid all the blame for Tony's death on thier feet and had blustered about banning them from his funeral. She just wanted the flight to be over already so she could hug Tony. She couldn't imagine what he was going through right now, worry about his friends and team, and about if he still had a place. And he was alone.

               Director Sheppard better hire Tony back in when they got home, or Abby would deal with her herself. Tony was a great agent, he had a take on things that you didn't see often, and he got the job done right. He'd done nothing to warrent losing his position, and if he was medically fit she saw no reason for him not to come back to work, if that was what he wanted to do. Right now Tony needed, well she needed Tony to be home where he belonged, and NCIS was home too. This was almost like one of her best dreams, where Tony had never been shot, where he hadn’t died. Ducky shifted in his seat next to her and she looked at him. He had his medical go-kit on him to check out Tony and nothing else besides his wallet, and he looked pensive.

                “Abigail, dearest. I want you to be prepared. Anthony might have lingering problems from his prolonged coma, so he might not be as you remembered him. Some victims experience personality changes, or coordination issues after recovery.” Ducky warned suddenly, his voice tight as he spoke, and while Abby knew he was trying to make sure she wasn’t blindsided his words made her angry. Tony would be fine, he had to be. They had thought he was dead for almost a year now, and finding him and him not being alright would be like a huge cosmic fuck you. He'd been through enough already, something had to give, and he deserved a break in life. One year of being presumed dead was anough bad karma to deserve some good luck after all.

                “He made his movie references! He’d going to be fine. So what if he still has more recovery. He’s our Tony, nothing is ever going to change that. If he decides to become a macarana girl, then more power to him, he'll still be alright.” She replied stubbornly, before sighing as she thought of Gibbs and his team. “Gibbs is going to skin us alive for not telling him, or better yet calling him as soon as we realized what what going on so he could see Tony for himself.” She murmured, sounding a little giulty. She swore she'd only been thinking about how bad it would be if Gibbs went all revenge drive, and getting to Tony the quickest she could. Ducky snorted, looking slightly amused by her words. She looked at him curiously, trying to figure out why he was amused, the sudden change in emotion would have been funny,if it hadn't involved Tony. She had a feeling she was going to be especially hair triggered when it came to her friend. She couldn't help it though, she didn't take loss very well, and she'd never gotten over his 'death'. He smiled at her gently, taking her hand.

                “Jethro will be far more distracted by Anthony when we return than our lie of omission by not bringing him into this situation immediatly. The fact that Anthony is alive, but in need of care to fully recover will distract him from his initial anger long enough for him to calm over our deception in returning him home.” Ducky promised her, patting her knee in a fatherly manner. Abby had to smile at Ducky’s words. Her Silver Fox hadn’t taken Tony’s death well at all, what with the realization that he cared more for Tony then he'd let himself believe before and all. And now with Tony alive? Gibbs would be all growly and protective, but best of all he’d be himself again. And she didn’t think he would let the chance to be with Tony pass him by again, not with the reminder that at a moments notice he could be snapped away. She had a feeling that Rule Number Twelve was going to find itself very extinct in the eyes of the Bossman, and soon.

               “Whoever was involved with this is going to wish that they were never born.” She suddenly said conversationally as her mind jumped from Gibbs and his feelings to how everyone would react to thier little suprise. Ducky snorted, closing his eyes for a moment. She grinned at his reaction, knowing he was playing it out in his head. Gibbs would be breathing Fire and making sure that Tony lived in his own little safety bubble, Kate would go secret service protection on Tony making sure that this never happened again and he wouldn't dissipear on them, and McGee? Well Tim probably would ensure the financial downfall of all participants, with his white hat turned black hacking skills- he was one scary guys when one of his makeshift family was threatened.

                 “Indeed they will Abigail. One does not take a member of our family from us and come away unscathed. Now let us put that out of our minds for the remainder of our flight. Anthony will not need us showing up filled with righteous anger.” He replied finally. Abby sighed, closing her own eyes. The next couple of weeks were going to be a fun filled, that was certain enough with what had happened in the last hour alone. Anything could happen in the next couple of days, and then there was the after math of this. Gibbs would make whoever had taken Tony pay, one way or another. She didn't want to imagine how Tony was feeling right now, what he would be feeling in the coming weeks as everything played out, and she had a feeling that even getting back into an expensive suit and eating whatever he could before Ducky got there to take over his diet would fix it. No, only being home would and she intended to have him home soon.

* * *

 

               Gibbs growled as he entered Abby’s lab to find it dark and a note saying sorry on the door. He had been expecting test result on thier case from her, and finding her gone didn't put him in a good mood. And then when he went to Ducky’s morgue only Palmer was there. They had a case to work on, yet neither was present. It didn’t sit well with him, because those two didn’t just run off in the middle of a case. Palmer didn’t know where Ducky was- apparently the older man had left after a phone call and hadn't come back that he knew of. So Gibbs went to his next source of information, if his people had left of thier own free will she would know about it. Jenny looked like she had a head ache from hell, and when she looked up to see him she sighed, rubbing her eyes before leveling him with a look that told him she knew what he was doing in her office. He returned the semi-glare with an uminpressed look and she laughed dryly.

                “Ms. Sciuto has had a family emergency. She requested the remainder of the day off rather quickly, adding she might be gone tomorrow. I have a replacement coming in the next hour, though from experiance i know she won't like someone messing around in her lab but then again she doesn't really have a choice in the matter considering NCIS doesn't stop getting cases just because she's gone. Dr. Mallard was called home when his mother took ill, his replacement is heading in now. Any other questions?” She bit out sarcastically, sounding like she wanted to get him the hell out of her office. Their interactions had been tense the whole time she’d been here, since she had arrived in the aftermath of Tony's death and had tried rekindeling what they had shared before. She still didn't take rejection very well, and it seemed like she hadn't been able to seperate her personal life from professional. It annoyed the hell out of him. He growled at her report.

               “Why didn’t they tell me their selves? And two of our staff taking off for family emergencies at the same doesn’t sound right. It's not very well damned likely that that's the true reasoning” He replied, his voice just as sarcastic as hers. She didn’t flinch though, instead she glared at him harder, like she could make him vanish in one look. He wasn't faint of heart though, and she should know that about him by now. 

                “Why don’t you ask them yourself Jethro? You have a phone don’t you? I don't have all the answers, and with the way your people operate I'm glad that I don't.” She drawled. He rolled his eyes before leaving, making sure to slam the door as he did. He could imagine her jumping in her seat and glaring at where he had stood, and it did alot to make him feel a little better. Her persistance in trying to re-ignite their doomed romance had made it so Gibbs didn’t like working for her. She didn’t understand he was not available, that he wouldn’t be ever. After his girls and Tony? Well he was putting his love life into the grave along with them. He didn’t want anyone else, and she didn’t accept that. He pulled out his phone and dialed Ducky first. The older man answered, and from the noise behind him he could tell he was in a populated area. He knew Ducky’s mother was in poor health, so he could believe he had to go to her. It was Abby he was worried about.

                “Do you have any idea what’s going on with Abby?” He asked bluntly, not letting his feelings show in his voice. Ducky sighed, but Gibbs could hear a note of fondness in it, like he was amused by his line of questioning. The knot in his chest eased a little. If Ducky wasn't worried about Abby, then whatever was going on couldn't be bad. He knew that the other man wouldn't let anything happen to her, not while he could help it.

                 “Abigail received some very startling news this morning I'm afraid. I ran into her when I was heading home to mother. She seemed to be fine though, the news was nothing too drastic or upsetting. Why do you ask Jethro?” Ducky replied, but there was something in his voice that made Gibbs stand a little straighter. He was hiding something, he’d known his friend long enough to know that. He rethought his earlier assumption of everything being fine. He didn't like it when he didn't know things, and secrets involving two of his family members were not welcome at all.

                  “Where exactly are you now Ducky?” He asked, trying to get a fix on his location and mood. “I can drop by to check on you and your mother.” Ducky chuckled at his obvios probing, definatly amused now by his behaviour. Gibbs resisted the urge to demand that Ducky tell him what was happening. One other thing he also knew about his friend was that he would do things in his own time, and expecting him to comply with his wishes could be a fools error.

                   “Mother is fine now Jethro. In fact she was doing much better when I came home and I decided to accompany Abby in case she needed help with her sick family member.” Ducky replied, expanding slightly on the news he had mentioned, but not going into specifics. The very fact that he was dancing around just  saying what was happening annoyed him. Gibbs heard Abby giggling and frowned, when Abby was worried about someone she didn’t bounce or chuckle, she got sad and quiet. If Ducky was helping her with a sick family member she would be that sad quiet, not laughing like she was. She hadn’t done much of laughing or any of her old behaviour since Tony… Died. Something definatly was going on here. He heard Ducky try to quiet her but then there was a jostle.

              “Hi Gibbs! Don’t worry this isn’t anything bad, but it’s a surprise, so no getting McGee to go hacker on us. You have to wait until tomorrow for an update- we’ll have our phones off. Bye I love you.” Abby babbled, sounding so like her old self that it hurt, before the line went dead. Gibbs stared at his phone, frowning. He wanted to know what the hell was going on with his people. He headed back to the bull pen. McGee looked up as he came in, Kate and Ziva following suit.

               “Did Abby have anything yet?” Kate asked. He grunted and they looked confused.

               “Abby took a personal day with Ducky. They’re both AWOL. We need to finish this case so we can find out what’s happening with them. My gut tells me something’s going on.” He muttered, not mentioning thier behaviour. He knew that they had to finish this case, and Ducky hadn't sounded harried, or like he was in trouble, so figuring out what was going on with them could wait. McGee’s eyes widened at his statement though, and he turned to his computer typing rapidly.

               “I’ll run a search to see if anything pop’s up.” McGee muttered as he worked, sounding distracted. He had taken a step up when Tony died, making sure he kept aware of his surroundings, and the status' of the people he cared about. Tony would be proud of him. Gibbs didn’t stop him as he worked and Ziva frowned, an obious look of disapproval staining her face. He ignored it, because david didn't approve of alot of things.. This was nothing new.

              “Now is not the time for personal errands McGee. I’m sure if Abby was in trouble that she or Doctor Mallard would contact us and alert us to any situation. We have a case.” She scolded, looking like she expected to be backed up in her opinions, only to flinch back from the glares that she got from every angle.

               “David, if you don’t get what this team is by now you never will. McGee, go ahead and run your search in the background. If you pick up anything I’ll look into it.” Kate growled from her seat, where she was running down leads on their current case. Gibbs smiled at her briefly and Ziva was reminded that she was nothing more than an outsider to these people. In the almost year she’d been on their team she was no closer to gaining their trust. It was frustrating to no ends that she could not make progress in becoming closer to them.

              They worked in silence for the next hour. Only speaking up when one of them found something pertaining to the case. It was a run of the mill murder, but they didn’t have a solid motive yet. Ziva almost jumped when McGee’s computer beeped loudly, alerting them to the fact that something had been found in it's search, and all eyes fell on him. McGee frowned as he read through the alert, his eyes darting across the screen and a slightly look of disbelief on his face. Gibbs almost snapped at him to speak, but then he looked up.

               “Abby and Ducky are in LA. Their plane landed an hour ago.” He informed everyone, his voice carrying a shocked tone. Gibbs’ gut clenched. One of his people didn’t just fly across the country at the drop of a hat, let alone two. He pulled out his phone and dialed G Callen’s number, the LA Agent would either know what was happening, or would be able to get eyes on Ducky and Abby and find out. The other man answered as he walked away from his team.

               “I would have thought you would have called sooner Gibbs. It isn’t often we’re ahead of you when it involves three of your people.” G greeted, his voice sounding amused, but slightly confused and shocked. Gibb's straightened up- he was right, something was going on. The mention of a third person threw him though. Abby and Ducky were his only unaccounted for members.

                “Three? I only know of two of them in your area.” Gibbs replied, his gut churning with dread. He had a feeling that when he found out who the third person was he wasn't going to be happy. The man without a name chuckled, and he could hear the chair squeak as G leaned back in it, and could imagine the smirk that would be painted over the younger man's face as he spoke to him. G didn't get to have the upper hand in things with him often.

                 “From what we can tell their not in trouble, so you can rest easy. We’ve had eyes on one of them since I ran into him, not that he knew it was me. He looks terrible by the way, not as bad as what you would expect from a dead guy, but bad.” He murmured playfully, his voice slightly worried. “I almost brought him in when I found him to tell you the truth, but I wanted the story first and i didn't think swooping in and taking him to headquarter's would promote too much trust.” Gibbs gritted his teeth. Callen was making any sense at all, what with the talk about dead men, and as the other man chuckled he knew he was doing it on purpose. He took a deep breath, so he didn’t snap, and tried to think about who G was talking about.

                 “Who the hell is my third person? I don’t have time for games Callen. I'm not liking the fact that two of my people went AWOL, and flew across the country without giving me a head's up.” He finally demanded, not able to figure it  out and not wanting to play guessing games. Callen sighed, it was loud and gusty through the receiver.

                 “Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. I was staking out an internet Café when he got out of a car and got a hold of Sciuto. Since he didn’t notice me I was able to listen in and run with the information from there. He didn’t die, he was in a coma for 6 months however, and then when he got out of it he had amnesia for three months. His father, who he called an asshole, had been with him one a week. I was able to trace payments from his father to a private hospital, with a patient by the name of Anthony Paddington- his mother’s maiden name by the way. I was also able to trace payments from one Eli David to Anthony DiNozzo Senior. Your boy wasn’t cleared to be released from the hospital, but it looks like he did a runner the first chance he got. I have agents outside of the hotel Ms. Sciuto booked for him.” He informed him. Gibbs leaned against the wall and shot a look over at his team. David was watching intently and he almost barked at her to leave. He didn’t trust her, and with her father involved now? Something stank to high heaven's in this, and it wasn't just the fact that they had been lead to believe Tony was dead.

                  “Exactly how did he look?” He asked, his voice gruff, hopefully hiding what he was feeling, because now was not the time to break down. He had too much to do, to figure out before Tony was home. When the other man was back in his sights, well then he could let his emotions overwhelm him, but not a moment sooner. G sighed.

                 “He looked rough. From what he told Sciuto he didn’t know that he’d been declared dead until this morning. Sciuto and Mallard are with him now- my team told me they went into his hotel room.” He replied. “Listen Gibbs, I know your first instinct is to come running, but DiNozzo’s in good hands. We won’t let anything happen to him, and I don’t think your other people will either. Sciuto told him she was bringing Mallard out to clear him to fly back to D.C., if he couldn’t then they will be taking a train back.” He added. Gibbs growled.

                 “Those two should have told me the minute he contacted Abby.” He grunted, feeling slightly betrayed that they hadn't. G laughed loudly.

                  “Gibbs, I’ve seen you since DiNozzo was declared dead. I don’t blame them for not bringing you along. You’d kill his father just for the stunt alone, but noone of us know the full situation. Right now they are making sure he’s alright for transport, and we’ll put them on a plane ourselves if he is. I think you need to let them handle it. This guy’s been through hell, I’m looking at his medical records right now and it’s a damned miracle he’s alive, let alone mobile enough to pull of what he did. He died 5 times while they were working on him, and the doctors honestly didn’t think he’d wake up from the coma.” He replied. Gibbs gripped his phone so hard he heard in creak. Tony had gone through that alone, with only his estranged father by his side. He wanted to know what the hell was going on, and what David’s involvement in the whole thing was. He didn’t miss the fact that by having Tony out of the way it opened a spot for his daughter on his team, and he didn’t doubt that Ziva shooting her brother, the man she was handling, was a way of enduring her to him. Callen was right though. He had things here he needed to take care of before Tony came home.

                  “Keep an eye on them. Let me know when they leave and how they’re leaving. I’ll try and make sure that everything is clear on this end for their return.” He growled, his mind racing. Eli David and he did not see eye to eye, but if the man had helped DiNozzo Senior hide that Tony was alive to plant his daughter on his team. Well there would be hell to pay. Callen chuckled in his ear, the husky tones reminding Gibbs that he had once been attracted to him. It was a long time ago, and defiantly not current, but it brought a smile to his face.

                  “I’ll keep your boy safe Gibbs. You deserve a chance at being happy, and before you think to deny that i can tell by your voice. Do you want my team to introduce ourselves?” He asked softly, a note of concern in his voice. Gibbs rubbed the bridge of his nose. If he did that then they would know that he knew.

                   “They’ll know that I know about Tony being alive if you do. And they were trying to keep it from me so I wouldn’t go ballistic.” He muttered, keeping his voice down. Callen laughed again, sounding amused by his reaction. He heard the creaking of his chair again.

                   “They’re in this branches territory Gibbs. And a NCIS agent that was supposed be dead seen alive? It’s bound to have gotten our notice. We can tell them we haven’t informed you yet. Besides Hetty is getting nervous with the long distance surveillance. She wants DiNozzo where we have eyes on him personally. She doesn’t like the fact one of NCIS’ agents was declared dead prematurely, especially since the threat to his safety was neutralized almost a year ago. She claims Sec-Nav is going to be making heads roll over this, but I don’t know. Someone had to have eased this along.” He replied. Gibbs sighed. He’d feel better personally if Ducky and Abby knew they had back up. He didn’t know Tony’s condition, nor what his father would do once he realized his son was in the wind.

                    “Go ahead and show yourselves. I’m with Hetty on this, the longer he’s out of sight the longer I’m going to be second guessing not coming out there myself.” He admitted. He saw Ziva get up and almost growled.

                    “Got it. I’ll have DiNozzo and your people back at head quarters within the hour.” Callen chirped, before the phone line went dead. He hung up and passed Ziva, not stopping to talk with her. McGee and Kate looked at him worriedly and he smirked. He’d let Abby surprise them with her find.

                     “The LA office has eyes on them. Nothing’s wrong, Abby’s brother got sick and Ducky’s helping out.” He reported. His team looked relieved and confused by his declaration. “Now get back to work!” He ordered, and they jumped back to the investigation. Ziva looked at him confused and he ignored her. He didn’t know if she had anything to do with the fubar situation they were in, and until he did he wasn’t trusting her with a thing.


	5. Not Such A Secret

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 0.o I went away for the day and i got fed reviews and Kudos. Thank you all- you make the plot bunnies very happy. That being said i'm glad that this story is so well received, and here's another update. I'm still writing ahead of updates- meaning i have a couple chapter's ready to throw up whenever i get the urge to.

               Tony woke up to something warm pressed against his side and hands in his hair. He  didn’t panic over the sudden company in his bed, but instead grinned as he opened his eyes and saw Abby stretched out in bed with him, a gentle smile on her face. The reilief he felt at just seeing her, of knowing that this was real and he was going to be going home soon was indescribable. He heard a series of movements and looked over to see Ducky opening up his go-kit and spreading out over the bedside table. Abby tugged on his hair and he looked at her, a little amused by her need for his attention. He could almost here her inner Abby yelling at him for looking away. She had tears in her eyes as she looked at him though, reminding him of what was going on. His amusement died a little as he realized how she must be feeling right now- to her he'd been dead for almost a year. 

               “You’re not allowed to do this to us again Tony. I’m so glad you’re alive though. The workplace was hell when you were gone, and Gibbs changed, and not in a good way. McGee and Kate staked out his house for like the first three months after they said you were dead because they were afraid he was at the end of his rope. Nothing's the same without you, nothing. I hate it so much.” She murmured, nuzzling her head into his neck as she spoke. Tony wrapped an arm around her,  trying to make her feel better and feeling mystified himself. He had never imagined that him dying would matter much to anyone. He was an annoying person, and one would think that without him lives would have became easier. Lord knows that after his mother passed his father had acted like he was some sort of burdan. DiNozzo Senior was all the things he never wanted to be. And worse yet was when he had no mamories he'd actually started liking the man who visited him every week without fail and listened to anything that came out of his mouth. Thinking back on the last 4 and a half months left him confused, because the man he'd grown to know wasn't very much like the father who he'd learned to avoid and ignore as much as he could.

               “Why would he kill himself? I was just his senior field agent and a pain in his ass. It's not like we had a friendship beyond work or anything- I swear he just tolerated me most days.” He muttered, drawing himself from his thoughts of his father and focusing at the matter at hand. Abby had implied that they had been afraid of Gibbs suiciding on them, and he couldn't understand why he would even consider that, let alone make the other's think that was a possibility. She cuddled closer to him as Ducky sighed, drawing his attention again, Abby didn't make a sign that his attention wandering bothered her this time. The older man had a half smile on his face, one that confused Tony even more. He hated being out of the loop, and he could tell that right now he definatly was missing something.

                “Do not underestimate your worth Anthony, you are greatly valued as a friend and as family to all of us, although to some you are much more than that. You were missed terribly by all that knew you during the time that you were absent from our lives.” He assured him before brandishing his stethoscope with a florish. “Now, while dear Abigail is right about the state of affairs at home, and our fears when your death was announced I’m afraid I must separate the two of you for a few moments. I need to see whether we’ll be taking plane or train home, and assure myself of your health.” He added, a smile portraying his regret painting his face. Abby whined at his announcement, clinging tighter to him and wrapping a leg around his in a manner that stated she wasn’t letting go.

                “I just started cuddling him Ducky. We can wait for you to examine him. Do you business after we bask in the fact that he’s alive and here and that we can hug him. I'm not letting go of him right now so you're out of luck.” She demanded, her voice hard, but with a slight whine to it. Ducky chuckled, amusement at her reaction clearly painting his face and Tony had to admit that the fact Abby  so obviously missed him made him feel good. He'd been worried, in the back of his mind, since he remembered. Worried what the reaction to him contacting them would be, and if they had even noticed his absence. Her obvious reluctance to take her eyes off him proved more than words that what they were saying was true. He’d only just remembered them a month and a half ago, but he had missed them so much. He hugged her closer and kissed the top of her head, not saying a word about postponing ot getting the exam over. He was all for putting off being prodded.

               “Abigail, we’ve been here over an hour. You wouldn’t let me examine him while he was sleeping because you wanted to watch his chest rise and fall to convince yourself he was in fact living and this was not a bad joke. I think that we have sufficintly reassured ourselves to his physical being, and right now we should move onto his wellbeing. I won't be long.” Ducky informed her, a smile even in his voice. Tony should have been creeped out to know that they watched him sleep that long, he really should be, but he wouldn’t have expected anything else from her to tell the truth. Especially not after the almost year she had.

               “I still want to cuddle with him now though. The train wouldn’t leave until later if we have to use that and it takes about 31 hours. You know that. And we don’t have anything to pack up besides the clothes I got Tony to last until we can get him shopping, and we won’t be going out until the train or plane. And we so could leave tonight on a plane too.” She protested, not moving her face, so her words were muffled into his skin. Ducky sighed, and then everyone jumped as the room’s phone rang. Ducky looked perturbed as he moved to answer it, and Abby’s arms tightened around him almost painfully. He could feel her heart pounding against his chest at the unwelcome noise and he kissed her head trying to calm her. The intense reaction she was having was a little unerving to tell the truth.

              “Who may I ask is speaking?” Ducky answered the phone, all manners gone and his voice hard and as sharp as a knife. No one would know the phone number for this room, unless they knew who was in it. And there was one thing that Ducky was not going to let happen, he wasn’t going to allow Tony to be taken from them. His face changed as whoever was on the line spoke though, easing into a slighlty confused smile as he listened to whatever they had to say.

               “Agent Callen. Yes Anthony is in good health from what I have been able to observed. I should have known his presence in your city of operations would draw the attention on the LA branch of NCIS. Ah Ms. Lange, how lovely. You would provide an escort back to D.C. Well quite right, I agree that Anthony’s situation should evoke the utmost concern for his return home. Thank you, we shall be awaiting your men.” Ducky’s demeanor changed as he spoke, the confusion clearing and leaving only a grin lighting his features. When the call ended Tony looked at him apprehensively, wondering himself just what was going on. It shounded like NCIS knew he was alive, or at least the LA branch did. And if they knew it was only a matter of time before Washington knew. Wheather it was from McGee's snooping, or someone straight out callong Gibbs to tell him that he'd been spotted. Part of him was relieved that the whole revealing thing was taken from his hands, he knew that he would have second guessed himself and drawn it out. Hell he might not have actually been able to do it himself.

              “Gibbs is going to find out before you get me home- you do know that right?” He asked, his mind clearing and a peaceful feeling filling him. This was so much easier than deciding how he would break it to his boss. Although if McGee found out first it would so take away his chance to pull a Zombie prank on the probie. That might be a good thing though, he wouldn't want to be accidently shot by the nervous younger man. Ducky nodded, looking serene, and then his looked turned to Abby. She had wide eyes as she looked up from Tony’s neck, her hear was still punding like a frightened rabbit's would be.

               “I think I should conduct my examination before Agent Callen and his team arrives Abby. They have been monitoring Anthony since before he spoke with you and are most eager to relocate him to a more controllable environment. I happen to agree with moving him from the public eye, we do not need a scene to be made, and I suspect his father will not be happy with his departure from the hospital's care and the ruse he had been perputrating.” He told her, she pouted at his lecturing tne, but unwound herself and Ducky looked at him. “You have nothing to fear my boy. Now please sit up.” He asked politely. Tony followed his directions, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and getting ready for Ducky to examine him

               “The Docs told me that my right lung sustained damage from the bullet ricocheting in my chest. I know I was on a respirator for the first month of my coma from my medical files, but then my lungs started sustaining themselves and I was taken off. I’ve been told they sound almost normal and from x-rays I have minor scarring from the bullet and the plague.” He repeated dutifully, knowing from experiance that withholding information from Ducky wasn't a good idea. If he lied and the other man found out later than the lecture would be far worse than the poking and prodding Ducky would do to make sure everything was healing as it was supposed to be. Ducky’s face was hard as he spoke, whether it was at the reminder of the shooting, or of the plague Tony didn’t know, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to. He knew that Ducky reguarded the teams as his family, and if anything went wrong with his team he was hardest on himself first and formost. The older man snapped his stethoscope on, a determined look painting his features.

                “We shall see just how well your recovering shan’t we?” Ducky asked before listening to his chest. Tony breathed on cue, for however long or deep he was told to. The tight look on Ducky’s face eased steadily as he did what he was told to and Tony smirked. It was good to know he passed Ducky’s inspection, and he knew he had because if anything was wrong Duck'y face wouldn't relax. No he's move onto part two of his mother henning stage and Tony doubted that they would leave for Washington untill he was satified with his recovery's pace. When he remembered everything he’d been worried that his father hadn’t informed his Doctors of his medical history, considering Tony DiNozzo had been the one to have the plague, and it wasn’t a common thing to see in a patient considering the Plauge wasn't spread naturally and was a medevil illness. Ducky looked up at him and sighed softly. Tony wiped the smirk off his face as the other man looked up- there was no reason for the Duck man to know he was pleased with himself for his recovery pace.

                “Well, did I pass?” He asked cheekily. He saw Abby tear up and frowned inside, every time he acted like he had before she about burst into tears. It was like she expected him to be another person. He'd have to talk with her or something, but in the end this might just be a phase related to his return from the dead. Ducky smiled widely, his eyes aparkeling as he looked him over. There was something in his face too, a relieved quality that spoke volumes. Ducky had expected him to be different too. This was almost as frustrating as being stuck in an unknown place, barely able to move with no way of contacting his team. He had a feeling he was going to be frustrated with his team a whole hell of a lot, if this was any indication of how they would treat him in the future.

                “You’re recovery exceeds my previous expectations Anthony. Your lungs sound almost normal, far more than I would have expected from your battle with the plague alone. I don’t think I’ll have a problem clearing you to fly. However I will need to examine you more in depth before I can allow you to return to work, if that is still what you wish to do. My experience with persistant vegetative states leads me to err on the side on caution as to your full recovery though, i expect some quirks to stay with you as unfirtunate as that may be.” He replied, his voice warring with the look that he was giving him. Tony didn’t resist the urge to scowl at him as the words sunk in. Ducky expected him to be crippled, and that was not going to happen. There was no chance in hell he was going to accept that.

               “I may not be at 100% yet Ducky, but I’ve proven that the Doctor’s expectations for my recovery hold no water before and i will do it again. I will go back to NCIS as soon as possible in just as good shape as I was in before, if not better.” He replied, his voice hard. Four and a half months ago he couldn’t walk on his own, and now he could run. He wasn’t going to be tied down by the fact he’d been in a coma for six months or any what if's that there might be. Ducky’s grin was almost blinding, and the rage at what had seemed to be his doubt quickly passed in light of his contradictary action.

                “That I have no doubt of my boy.” He replied with a small smirk, and Tony realized he’d been played. Ducky didn’t expect him to take no laying down, he was challenging him. Any further conversation was cut short when there was a knock on the door. Abby tensed up again bringing the mood back down, and Ducky sighed, heading into the living area, shutting his rooms door. Tony put his arm around Abby as he heard the older man open the door to the hall.

                 “Agent Callen, you really must learn to call before hand. You scared our guest and our selves.” Ducky announced loudly. Abby giggled, although it sounded a tad hysterical. Tony was really worried for her,  the call, the knock, she had looked like she was ready to break down at all of them. Was she scared that his father was going to come swooping in and hide him away again? Or had something happened to his Goth Girl while he was gone? There were too many damned questions and not nearly enough answers for his satisfaction.

               “I apologize Doctor Mallard. My team’s cleared the way to a car in the back so we can transport your guest safely to headquarter. Tony rolled his eyes at the tense wording. Everyone was acting like he was the president or something. Like there was going to be a masked attacker just waiting for him to step out in the light of day. As he stood he reminded himself that these people, his co-worker’s had thought he was dead and he had to take that into consideration  before he judged thier actions as silly, or overboard. They would calm, hopefully.

                “I feel like Harrison Ford as the President.” He announced cheerfully, stepping from his room. Callen grinned at him widely, relief in his eyes as he looked him over.

                 “Good to see you Tony. And yeah, you’ve kinda got the priority of being one of the most important people under our protection. You’re one of us, and we thought you were dead. Now I know that Gibbs will kill me if I let anything happen to you on my watch, so let’s get this show on the road. Hetty wants you safe in Headquarters in the next fifteen minutes.” He spoke, his voice playful and eyes sparkeling. Tony examined his face before smirking to himself. Gibbs already knew he was alive, and this man  had told him. So either Gibbs was on his way, or more likely he was making sure that there was no chance of a problem popping up on his end. The Boss-Man was probably breathing fire and Tony was suddenly glad he was here. This was one thing that he wouldn't like to deal with first hand.

                 “So when did you speak to the Bossman?” He asked playfully, going to pick up the four suits that had been delivered sometime while he slept. He looked up to see the shocked look on Callen and Ducky’s face. “Oh come on, that line about Gibbs killing you, there was truth in your eyes. You’ve spoken with him and assured him of my safety. And you know just what will happen if by some chance something happens to me. I can tell.” He teased. Callen laughed, leaning into the door and watching his movements. Tony had to admit he was handsome and if he didn't have an eye n someone else he might make a play for him.

                 “He called to see if we could get eyes on Dr. Mallard and Ms. Sciuto. Of course I didn’t know that when he called, I assumed he’d found out about you being of the living and had sent these two to retrieve you. We’ve had guards on you since the Café when I spotted you. He wanted to come straight out here when I told him just who his third man out here was, but I convinced him not to. He’d taking care of things on his end- he seemed to think that something wasn’t right with the events surrounding your false declaration of death. That man doesn’t take the people he loves being taken from him or hurt very well.” He replied. Tony faltered slightly at the last part of Callen’s statement, before pushing it out of his mind, he was reading to far into it. If course Gibbs cared for him. Still a part of his mind, the part that was still panicking over the fact that his team had Gibbs on suicide watch after his death was clambering for him to hear it out. It whispered that he was missing something. Something big, something that would be wonderful, but frightening at the same time.

                  “Gibbs would be angry over this. I mean he believed his SFA was dead, and that man does not like being lied to.” He replied easily, slipping back into his role of denial when it came to his boss. Callen smirked knowingly as Abby snorted from the bedroom door. She looked at the other NCIS agent with distrust.

                   “You shouldn’t be telling tales out of the classroom. Tony let his carry your suits, I have your wallet. Come on. Ducky cleared you for flying that means NCIS can give us a ride home.” She barked, sounding angry for some reason. Ducky looked exasperated.

                   “Come now Abby, there is no need to be angry with Agent Callen, I’m sure you will have much more time to assure yourself of Anthony’s well being now that the LA office is involved.” He cajoled, she rolled her eyes as Callen took Tony’s suits, before hugging him tightly, ignoring Abby’s squeal of indignation.

                    “You take good care of Gibbs when you get back. He’s a man that denies himself what he wants until it’s too late, and I saw how your death affected him. Only two other people ever got the same sort of reaction DiNozzo.” Callen whispered into his ear before letting him go. “I love it when I can bring an agent we thought was dead home. Come on people, we have a ride waiting.” He spoke louder. Tony’s head was spinning as everything clicked into place. This man was saying Gibbs loved him, as in he wanted him in his bed under him screaming type of love. His groin tightened at the sudden flow of images and then he smirked. It was about damned time the Bossman clued in to reality and saw what was in front of him. Tony hadn’t followed him like a puppy from Baltimore just for the head slap’s after all. He felt like whistling, like skipping even, and Callen’s smirk showed that he knew it.

                   “Ducky! Tell him that Tony’s off limits! We so don’t need anyone poaching him.” Abby growled as she grabbed her purse. Tony paused, so Abby knew. Hell if Gibbs was as bad as they said he was everyone probably knew. Which meant he was the last to know. Probie was never going to let him live this down. And Kate. She was going to have a field day considering he had her convinced he was an asshole playboy who loved them and left them. Ducky chuckled next to him, drawing him out of his thoughts, and half formed plans on just how he was going to capture Gibbs. He didn’t trust the other man to make the first move, so it was going to be up to him. Funny how revealing himself had scared the crap out of him, but thinking about how he could make Gibbs pin him to the nearest wall and screw his brain out? That just made him look foreward to getting home that much sooner.

                  “I do not think we have anything to fear from Agent Callen, he’s well aware of where Tony belongs I think.” He intoned, and Tony blushed bright red as he realized the man he often pretended was his father knew what he was thinking about, and what Callen had said. Ducky’s smirk to him said it all. Abby huffed and grabbed his arm, and then they were heading to the unmarked car in the back of the building, driven by one hot woman. Callen smirked at the woman who huffed.

                  "So we got our run away? Good. Get him into the car. I don't want to risk Gibbs coming down on us if we mess up." The woman said. Callen leaned aginst the car, not opening the door yet. Tony watched with a practiced eye. He wasn't attracted to the woman, this was more of something to get under her skin.

                  "You're not going to say hello to our guest Kensei? He's going to be famous soon, what with coming back from the dead and all." Callen hummed. The woman, Kensei sighed and looked at Tony. She smiled, showing her teeth and Tony chuckled, amused by her for some reason.

                 " Hello zombie boy. Now into the car. Hetty's not a happy woman over this, and i will bet anything that your Gibbs is going to be worse." She explained. He nodded, brushing past Callen and getting into the car. Abby smirked at the man she had decided to have a grudge against and Ducky rolled his eyes, both following suit. Tony leaned back in the seat as Callen got into the car and Kensei started driving. He was one step closer to going home, and it felt good.


	6. The World Tumbles and Falls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An Update for my lovelies. Sorry for the delay!

              They had closed the case, forty minutes after his talk with Callen McGee had found what they needed to get a motive, and he had cracked their suspect. McGee and Kate were getting ready to go home, still shooting him questioning looks that he ignored. He hadn’t explained why they shouldn’t be worried about Abby or Ducky beyond what he had said earlier and he knew that it was bothering them. Hell he wasn't happy that he hadn't gotten an update yet. As David got up so did he, he was going to get the truth out of her and her off his team before Tony got back if that’s what needed to be done. Jenny could stick her on another team if she had a problem with booting her out of NCIS, but he wasn't going to deal with an unknown around Tony.

              “David, with me.” He ordered sharply, his voice broking no argument as he headed to the elevator. She didn’t hesitate to follow him and when the doors closed he hit the switch, shutting it off. She didn’t even look nervous and that rankled him, she should be worried wih how he was feeling. “What do you know about Anthony DiNozzo?” He asked stiffly, getting straight to the point. She gave him a compassionate look, like she thought he was mourning Tony still, or that he was going to give her a pep talk of some sort on how to deal with the team's distant attitude.

              “That he was a good agent who was killed by my brother who was trying to kill Todd.” She replied, her voice steady, revealing not an ounce of nervousness or suspicion as to why he was asking. She didn't expect him to know about Tony if she knew. “Why?” He looked at her hard and finally she shifted slightly. Good she was getting apprehensive, that was more like it.

              “What do you know about the payments your father has been making to DiNozzo Senior?” He asked roughly, and her face was a mask of panic for mere seconds, before she covered it with calm. She knew. She knew that Tony was alive, and she hadn't said a word. She also suspected that he knew now. It was all or nothing.

                 “My father has been friends with DiNozzo Senior for many years. When Ari killed his son my father thought to recompensate him for his loss, which is all I know.” She replied, and the line sounded rehearsed in his ears. She was lying through her teeth and that pissed him off. She thought she could fool him, and the sad part was that her family had fooled him. She had known all of this time that Tony was alive, and she had known that they would want to know it. She had chosen not to say a word though, and he wasn’t going to let that pass.

                 “I want the damned truth David. Tell me why I shouldn’t kick you out of this building onto your ass right this second.” He hissed, his anger showing in the sense words. Her face shifted again, apprehension clear in it. She looked at him, then closed her eyes, swallowing hard.

                “You know DiNozzo is not dead do you not?” She asked, her voice a mere whisper, as she opened her eyes. He nodded sharply and she cursed, leaning back into the wall of the elevator.

                 “My placement had nothing to do with his death being faked.” She started off. “I told my father that helping DiNozzo Senior fake his son’s death made no sense, and that you all would find out once the man woke from his coma, but he did not listen to me. I don’t know if he felt guilty, or if he had his own plans that were made possible by his actions. From what I was told he arranged DiNozzo being declared dead to protect him as a favor to his father. And then he paid all of DiNozzo’s hospital expenses, and whatever his father needed.” She finally replied, her voice dull. He slammed a fist next to her head, making her jump and look at him with wide eyes.

                 “Why didn’t you tell us DiNozzo was alive when you were put on our team? If there was still danger we would have handled it. And then after, when you saw just how much he met to us?” He hissed, looking her in the eyes. She looked away, not able to keep eye to eye contact with him.

                “You would not have believed me. I know that I have no place on your team, that not one of your members trusts me. If I were to have come out and said he was alive with no proof, not even the name of the hospital he lay comatose in you would not have given it the time of night.” She shot back, her eyes flashing. He snorted, leaning closer. He would have believed her alright, because he had never gotten himself to accept that Tony was gone. One word out of her mouth to the contrary would have had him looking for his SFA, and he knew the woman in front of him damn well understood that. She didn’t waver in her anger and her smirked.

               “I think you underestimate just how much we care for DiNozzo. Proff or not, we would have looked into it and we would have found the money trail. That would have lead us to him, and he wouldn’t have sat alone in a hospital room now would he? Pack your bags David. I don’t care if Director Sheppard wants you here for whatever reasons, but you’re not on my team anymore. You said we didn’t trust you before? Well it looks like we were right not to.” He replied, his voice smug as he straightened out. Jenny was going to be pissed at him, he knew this. David stared at him, a look of disbelief on her face as his words registered in her mind.

              “I killed my brother to save you.” she spat out. He shrugged, not affected by her words.

              “And all of this leds me to wonder if that wasn’t planned also. After all what better way to gain someone’s trust than to kill their would be murderer and have the sob story of them being your brother.” He replied. She snorted, before sighing and running a hand through her hair. Then she looked at him, straight in the eyes.

              “When it became apparent that Ari was behind the attacks and attempted murder of DiNozzo my father gave the order to take care of him. The circumstances that it ended up happening in were favorable to his plans. I am not an extension of him however, and I have tried to prove that. No one will let me in though. I don’t know if DiNozzo is awake, nor his condition. I had tried keeping appraised of that, so if he woke I could perhaps slip him a message, or find the proof I needed to show that he was indeed alive.” She spoke, her voice agitated. Gibbs looked at her and wondered how much of what she was saying was the truth. He couldn’t lay all the blame on her, even though it was damned tempting to, but if she didn’t know Tony was awake. She might be just as much of a pawn in this as her brother had been to their father. He needed time to think about what was happening.  She hadn’t held out telling him the truth long, and that told him something though. As a Mossad agent if she didn’t want to tell him she wouldn’t have. He flipped the switch n the elevator, making it move again.

                 “I want the desk your using cleared out by the morning David.” He insisted, Tony wouldn’t come home to find that he’d been replaced. That desk was his, and he would be coming back to it. She nodded tightly.

                 “I understand. The desk I am in belonged to DiNozzo, and you will bring him back when you find him.” She replied, before pausing. “I will not be informing my father that you know of DiNozzo’s continued living, so if you find him he will not be moved from that location.” She murmured. He looked at her a second before nodding. If she kept her word, then he might have to re-think about his opinion of her. Might. He wasn’t convinced yet.

               “See to it that you don’t. When I find DiNozzo he’s coming home, no matter what his condition.” He replied, not letting her know that he knew Tony was awake, or where he was. There was still a chance that she was lying to him, and confronting her with the knowledge that he knew the other man was revealing more than enough to her considering everything. She nodded shortly as the elevator opened to the garage. She didn’t speak as she left, making her way to her car. Gibbs sighed, leaning against the side of the elevator. He wanted nothing more than to be in LA this instant, where he could see for himself that Tony was alive and well- but he had work to do here. He steeled himself before hitting the bull pen’s floor again. He needed to make sure Jenny wouldn’t cause any problems with Tony’s return. Even though it meant chancing telling the higher up of the situation and maybe leaks to people that they didn’t need finding out like David he wasn’t going to have Tony come back only to have a battle to get his life back in order. Jenny looked up, an irate grimace crossing her face and he leaned against the wall, examining her. It was sad, but he realized he didn’t trust her. Not one little bit.

* * *

 

                “Did you know?” He asked gruffly, not elaborating. The grimace flickered to confusion and she rolled her eyes, leaning back in her chair and sighing. It took a couple of minutes for her to respond.

                 “Did I know what Jethro? You’ll have to elaborate just a little more so I know what the hell you’re talking about.” She finally snapped. He took a step from the wall, still taking in her every reaction.

                 “Did you know that DiNozzo was alive?” He asked, shock flickered over her face and then she was pushing away from her desk, outrage painting her face. If she was lying she was good, but he knew she was. He just had to figure out if she was lying to him now.

                 “What did you just say Jethro? Because it sounded like you just told me that one of our agents that we thought was dead, that was pronounced dead and has been buried is alive. Where is he? What’s his condition?” She demanded, her face hardening as the shock of his statement wore off, revealing the woman he knew her to be. The one who, while he wouldn’t opening admit it cared about her agents. And she apparently still saw Tony as her agent. That was a good sign, it meant if Tony was cleared for duty she wouldn’t protest his return.

                “I just found out earlier today Jen. He’s the family emergency that Ducky and Abby took off to deal with. They haven’t told me, but the LA office informed me when I called to get eyes on them. Apparently DiNozzo was in a coma for six months, then amnesiac. And the LA office has traced payments from Eli David to DiNozzo’s father.” He drawled out. Outage and anger painted her face as she went to stand at the window, her fists clenched.

                “Damnit Jethro. I don’t like knowing one of our agents was taken like this, seriously injured and with us thinking he was dead. Anything could have happened to him. I want him home, where his recovery can be monitored. David and I may be friends, but he’s going to learn that hiding one of my agents from me won’t be accepted.  You said he had been amnesiac, did the LA office have any idea of his current status?” She asked, her voice tight. She wasn’t looking at him, but as she stood he could see that she was digging her nails into her palm hard enough to draw blood. He cleared his throat and she looked over.

               “Just how did Ziva get assigned to my team Jen? Because this is too damned convenient in my eyes. Dinozzo was taken out- and if it hadn’t been him than it would have been Todd. That one auctioned opened up a spot on my team- if DiNozzo had been alive that spot wouldn’t have been permanent. She knew he was alive Jen, she didn’t deny that when I told her to clean out his desk. She didn’t inform one of us though, and that means her loyalty still is with her father and the Mossad. It also means she’s a damned liability, so think about that before you think to protest my removal of her from my team.” He growled. Jen’s eyes hardened as he spoke.

               “She knew DiNozzo was alive?” She asked, repeating his statement like she couldn’t believe what he was saying was true. He nodded and she cursed. “Sending her back on her ass will alert Eli that we don’t trust him anymore. And damn it Jethro he’d proven he can get people in without our knowing. We’ll have to limit what she knows until we know if we can trust her or not.” She hissed, before rubbing her eyes and then looking at him. Her eyes searched his face, then softened, a wry smile painting itself over her face. She shook her head.

              “I guess Rule twelve isn’t going to mean much soon is it? I won’t cause problems, but I know that look on your face Jethro. Good luck, and don’t let him pass you by again.” There was a tinge of regret in her voice as she spoke, but as he looked he couldn’t find a sign that she was going to cause trouble. That didn’t mean that he was going to confirm her suspicions, not until he saw Tony himself. She grinned slightly at his silence.

              “I don’t know what you’re talking about Jen. Right now I’m concerned for my SFA.” He grunted. She smirked, her eyes twinkling and for one moment the air wasn’t so tense. Not like it had been for the almost year that she’d been his boss. She laughed at his response, her eyes twinkling. She shook her head and sighed.

              “Bullshit me all you want Jethro, but I should have seen that you’d fallen in love and lost someone when I got here. Instead I ignored all of the signs I should have seen and pressed on trying to get back together with you. I apologize for not getting the hint. No I want out missing agent back under our wings. Untill we know why his death was faked I don’t trust the people involved.” She replied, her demeanor changing from friendly to hard in a second.

              “I’m not complaining about you accepting this so easily Jen, but how do I know you weren’t involved?” He shot back, still not trusting her. She rolled her eyes, the tension returning to the air around them. She stalked forward until their chests touched and looked him straight in the eyes. Their gazes stayed locked together for a couple moments then she pressed her finger into his chest and growled.

              “I would not have risked one of my agent’s lives like that Jethro. To go through faking his death? It required secrecy and a hell of a lot of work. And DiNozzo’s medical history is a  little telling as to who he is. Having had the plague in itself would raise eyebrows, even in the most well paid for secrecy. The fact there was no flags raised by that being reported in a John Doe, means his Doctors probably had no idea about it, and that means his treatment was below par. I have no idea what damage his lungs have sustained without the proper treatments, though I don’t doubt that Eli paid for the best. I didn’t know, and I will make sure that whoever did this doesn’t have the chance to do it again.” She replied harshly. Jethro didn’t get to respond before his phone rang.

           “Callen, what’s going on?” He barked into the phone, his chest tight with the knowledge that he was finally going to get that update that he had been waiting for. And knowing that it could be bad news for his SFA. He heard the other man laugh huskily.

            “The little lost bird’s in the nest and ready to fly. Doctor Mallard cleared him, and our doctors have too. He’s recovered well, me earlier estimation of his state was wrong. Oh and he knows you know he’s among the living. He took one look at me and guess, so I doubt his deductive reasoning has been damaged.” He replied, sounding smug. “Sciuto is convinced I’m poaching on your territory though, so I expect her to babble tattle on me the first chance she gets.” He added and he could imagine the smirk painted on his face. Jethro felt the knot in his chest ease up a little when he spoke of how well Tony was doing. From the moment he had found out that Tony was alive he’d been terrified of what his state was. What he would see when Tony came home.

             “When are you flying him back?” He asked, trying to keep his emotions out of his voice. Callen snorted.

             “We’re fuelling up the jet right now, so you better have things on your end worked out enough for him to come home. He’s a little nervous, which is understandable. Hetty’s having Kensei and I escort your people back though, and we’re to stay put until this is resolved.” He replied with a drawl. Gibbs sighed, closing his yes and shaking his head. Tony wasn’t going to get a chance to breath until this was all resolved.  But then again Gibbs wasn’t sure he was going to be able to let the younger man out of his sight for more than ten minutes ever again.

              “Let me know when you take off. I’m working on things on my end. He’s still an official NCIS agent and we’re trying to prevent any possible leaks. When you land head to my place.” He ordered. He didn’t want to admit just yet that all of Tony’s personal items were stored in his attic. He hadn’t been able to get rid of anything once the team had cleared out the other man’s apartment. It was kind of ironic, considering that Tony was alive. He would bet anything that Tony would appreciate all of his things back. And it would ease him back into life.

             “Will do Gibbs. I’m bringing him home, safe and sound, don’t you worry about that.” He replied before the line went down. He sighed and looked over to Jenny. The red head was watching him closely, a small smile playing over her lips. She grinned widely as their eyes connected.

              “Good news I take it Jethro?” She asked pointedly. “You’ve got that look in your eyes. The one you get when a problem resolves itself and you step worrying so much.” She added softly. “It’s good to see you like this, I’m an idiot for not realizing why you were so much more of a bastard then I remembered.” He raised an eyebrow.

            “DiNozzo’s been cleared for flight. Lange’s sending them home, along with two of her agents since they caught the case. Meaning they found out he’s alive first and they want to see it through.” He replied.  She sighed, heading to her desk. There was a hint of relief on her face that made him pause. She shrugged.

            “His lungs can’t be severely damaged if they’re flying him home. Which means that he might have a chance to be a field agent again depending on his general physical state, which is good. I read his record, when I took over for Morrow and found myself dealing with a great team who was dealing with the loss of one of their own. He’s a great agent, a valued one. I’d be an idiot to not let him back into NCIS. Any other agency would snatch him up in a second given his case record alone.” She replied wryly before clapping her hands down on her desk.

            “You are going to be having house guests soon, so I suggest you get home to prepare for them. I assume you’re not telling your team yet?” She announced. He nodded sharply.

             “I think I’ll let DiNozzo break the news he’s not dead and buried to them.” He replied, a smirk playing across his lips. She laughed, nodding. She had never met DiNozzo, but Morrow’s personnel reports on the man had painted the picture of a prankster. She was almost looking forward to seeing how he handled his return to NCIS. One thing was certain though; it wouldn’t be a dull return. Jethro nodded to her, before making his way out of her office and she sighed. She was already getting a headache. Whoever was the cause of this was going to share it though. She would make sure of it. One didn’t take off with a wounded federal agent and no suffer repercussions.

           She pulled up her phone directory and found the number for one of the only other people she could think of calling. She’d make sure that DiNozzo’s placement wasn’t legal before she started raining hell on the two men that she knew were involved. If DiNozzo didn’t have an official case file listing him under witness protection than she had free reign. And Tobias would want in on the action. He might never admit it, but he saw Jethro as a friend, and one thing she knew is you never messed with that man’s friend’s or family.

           “Tobias? I have a favor I need to ask of you. Look up Anthony DiNozzo and see if he has an active case file.” She spoke sharply into the phone. There was a pause, then a grunt.

            “Why do you need me to look into a dead man? And Gibbs’ dead man at that?” Tobias asked warily. She rolled her eyes, sitting in her chair. First comes the defense Jethro’s secrets. She assumed Tobias had an idea in the very least of Jethro’s attachment to DiNozzo. And with her history with Jethro she understood why admitting that the man she wanted had been in love with his male subordinate was bad.

            “Just look up his name, and any other surnames in connection with his family- his mother’s maiden name, things like that. You’ll understand soon enough.” She replied, making sure to have a bored note in her voice. She didn’t want to betray her emotions before the time was right. DiNozzo wasn’t the only one who liked tricks. Tobias growled, before she could hear the click clacking of typing and then a sigh.

            “There’s nothing under his name, nor his mother’s maiden name- Paddington. Now what the hell is going on Sheppard? Dinozzo’s been dead almost a year now. If you’re looking for trouble than just stop. His death caused it’s fair share of pain already.” He warned. She sighed, half of her had wanted there to be a case. So it was a situation a bribery, or that the government had taken measures too far to protect one of their own.

           “DiNozzo’s not dead Tobias.” She said bluntly. “Apparently he was in a coma six months, and amnesiac three. He just got into contact with NCIS.” There was cursing on his end.

           “Damn it all to hell. The kid’s really not dead? Shit. Where’s Gibbs?” He demanded, sounding more worried than the man who had married one of Gibbs’ ex-wives should be. She didn’t bother hiding her smile, because he couldn’t see it nor would he care to. However his reaction to DiNozzo living just served to prove how much the young man meant to Gibbs. It was slightly humbling because she knew she’d never get that response from him. And she had slept with him for a while. If she was right Gibbs hadn’t ever made a move on DiNozzo.

           “He’s not dead, Gibbs is at home getting his place ready and DiNozzo’s on a flight to Washington as we speak.” She replied. Fornell sighed and she could imagine him squeezing the bridge of his nose.

           “Do we know what the hell is going on? Because Gibbs isn’t going to rest until he get’s his answers. Not when DiNozzo is involved.” He muttered. She sighed. This was the tricky part. Eli David was considered an ally.

            “Payments from a high profile person to DiNozzo’s father, and placements of a Mossad officer in NCIS after his ‘death’. Nothing concrete.” She admitted. Fornell cursed again.

             “I assume Gibbs’ is taking DiNozzo in at his place right? I’ll get a detail out front to make sure there is no nasty surprises.  I’m heading over to his place myself. I want to see the kid with my own eyes when he get’s in and Gibbs won’t let him out of his sight for long. I can guarantee that.” He muttered. Before she could respond the line went dead. She hung up the phone and looked at the wall. She had one hell of a headache.

             "Life isn’t going to be dull with you around is it DiNozzo?” She muttered to herself, before gathering her things. She needed to get home and get sleep. She had a feeling that sleep would be something she couldn’t afford for a while though. Not until they made sure that DiNozzo wasn’t in any trouble.


	7. Stay With Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bunnies!!!! they're biting me because someone fed them and reminded them that they like food. EEEK!!! I think they're removing my feet so i cannot move from my computer, but i can't be sure.... Feed the review monster... Please... Maybe they won't eat me then?
> 
> An Update for my lovelies, Hope you like it!

              G looked over at DiNozzo and watched him. Sciuto was curled up against his side, looking like she was going to claw out the eyes of any hapless sap that made the wrong move towards him, and Mallard was just watching him. There was an air of disbelief, wheather it was because he was alive and they were going home he didn’t know. He did know that DiNozzo’s death had effected everyone around him. And the way the other man was looking, it seemed like he couldn’t believe how much it had impacted those he had known. There was a serious story behind his lack of confidence in his self, one that he wouldn’t mind taking care of himself. After everything the other man had been through in the past year he didn't deserve to be doubting himself. A lesser man would still be stuck in his bed, convinced that he'd be there for life. DiNozzo was made of stonger stuff than that though.

             “Are you going to sit there and stare at me the whole flight? Cause I gotta say I’m going to get a complex if it keeps up much longer. Not that I would mind another complex. I'm all for the worshipping of my insanely sexy body.” Tony finally spoke. He wasn’t just talking to Callen though, he was talking to the other two people next to him as well. Mallard politely looked away but Sciuto cuddled closer to him, her arms going around him like an octopus. She stubbornly refused to let go when DiNozzo half heartedly struggled and then he sighed, wrapping his arms around her. She smirked in Callen’s direction as she settled and yawned.

              “I’m not going to go anywhere Abby.” The recently discovered man murmered in response to her actions, sounding a little exasperated and a lot worried. She snorted at his reassurance, disbelief in her eyes.

             “I know that. I won’t let you. I’m not going through losing you again, or having to help Kate strip because her clothes are crusted with your blood, or deal with McGee raging about what happened, and Gibbs going all revenge killer again. I didn’t understand before, why he would do something like that, kill someone to avenge someone else before you were ‘killed’ Tony, but I wanted to be the one who dealt the final blow. I really did. One of my family was taken from me and all I could think of was making that person hurt as much as I did.” She murmured, her voice sleepy. She yawned, as Tony tried to put together his thoughts and he felt her breath even out. He looked up and saw that Ducky was watching him again, a soft look on his face. Tony frowned at him slightly, still not entirely convinced that he was worth all of the mourning that had apparently transpired when he was considered dead. He was a beat cop that had made it good by following his cock. Not that had lead anywhere. Gibbs hadn’t even noticed he was interested in him, not before this. He didn’t fool himself into thinking he had been, was anything special. The soft look flickered to annoyance as Tony thought to himself.

            “What ever you may be thinking dear boy stop. You may have fooled yourself into thinking we would not notice if you passed from this world, but that is most defiantly not the case. You left a whole in out lives, both personal and professional.” Ducky spoke, his voice brittle with outrage and Tony jumped at it. How had the other man known what he was thinking? He hadn’t said anything. Callen snorted from where he was sitting.

            “I don’t think your boy is going to get it without a couple Gibbs’ style head slaps. But the Doc’s right DiNozzo. Personally, as Gibbs’ friend, I can tell you that man took your death hard. And it wasn’t just because you were his subordinate or any other crap you could think of. Face it- you’re worth more than you think and get over it.” Callen drawled.  Tony shot him a glare, but didn’t respond. He wasn’t going to either, because he didn’t know what to say. Instead he closed his eyes and leaned back. He’d deal with everything later. Even though he had slept quite a bit today- more than he had in one day for a couple weeks now, he was tired. Most of it was emotional though and he knew it. And he was heading into a landmine of more of it every second they were in the air.

           “Wake me up when we land.” He requested shortly, before following Abby into dreamland. Mallard sighed before looking over at Callen, his eyes old and sad. He looked disturbed by DiNozzo’s reaction, but he didn’t say anything and Callen didn’t offer anything in return. This was something that they would have to deal with in-house. And it was something that they would have to handle soon, it wasn’t good for the agent in front of him to downplay himself and his importance like he was. He didn’t know if it was the situation, or something deeper, but the files he had on DiNozzo showed just why every agency of the alphabet soup wanted a piece of him. He leaned back and closed his own eyes. He had a feeling that until this was resolved he wasn’t going to be getting much sleep. Gibbs was going to be like a bulldog in protecting what was his and he knew it. Callen didn't blame him, all things considered and all.

* * *

 

           Gibbs looked at his phone again, for the thousandth time in the last five hours. God knew it should be time for the plane carrying Tony to be landing in Washington, but he hadn’t gotten the call he was waiting for now. His chest was tight with the urge to drive to the airfield and wait for them, but he didn’t want to crowd the returning man. Hell Tony had made contact with them and found himself being flown home in one day. The emotional shock of that alone was almost more than Gibbs was willing to force on him. He’d have to deal with staying with Gibbs, but that was just because he wasn’t about to let his SFA out of his sights once he landed in his territory. He almost jumped as the phone actually rang and answered  it in a heartbeat.

            Tobias snickered in the background and he resisted the urge to look at his annoying friend. The man had been here since about twenty minutes after he’d gotten home and hadn’t missed a chance to poke fun at him when his eyes were drawn back to his phone as they waited for an update. They’d already eaten dinner, although he’d made sure to put some aside for Tony. He was sure that the younger man hadn’t been eating enough- he never did when he was sick or injured. He tore his mind from Fornell, and his thought and back to the phone.

             “Gibbs.” He barked into the phone, annoyed that it had taken so long for someone to call him. He didn't like waiting, and he definatly dind't like waiting when it involved one of his people. The fact that it involved Tony made waiting for information even worse though There was a laugh, and he could hear soft snores in the background as he waited for Callen to speak. He could almost guarentee that one of them was Tony, and just hearing the other man for the first time since the day of his 'death' eases his nerves a little. 

             “You’re man’s sleeping, so is Sciuto, but we’re landing soon. Are you going to be at the airfield? I know you’re second guessing doing it- or I think you are- but DiNozzo has some serious self worth doubts going on. He knows that you know he’s alive, so it won’t be a surprise if you’re there waiting.” Callen reported. Gibbs sighed, before grabbing his wallet and keys. Tony had self worth problem’s from this, from his damned childhood and the asshole of a father that never had time for him. Callen was right, he needed to be there, especially since Tony knew he knew and not being there would make him second guess himself more.

             “I’ll be there.” He replied tensely, heading to his car, Tobias followed him, an annoyingly silent shadow. Callen chuckled at his reaction, and Gibbs could imagine the knowing, shit eating grin plastered over his face. He thought it would look something similar to the one that Tobias was giving him.

              “We’ll be landing in fifteen minutes. Hetty called ahead to have a security detail covering where we land- she’s not expecting anything but with the facts of everything that happened she’d rather not chance  anything happening. I hope to god that this turns out to be something that can be taken care of easily Gibbs. DiNozzo doesn’t seem like the type that’s going to put up with constant tails and fawning for long. Hell I think if he was cleared for  it he’d go back to work the minute the plane set down and pretend like this never happened.” Callen murmured. Gibbs smirked slightly. Callen had a good read on Tony, but the fact that he was able to come to this conclusion assured him that his SFA hadn’t changed, and that was good news.

              “He would. He came back to work after having the plague too soon, but we’ll make sure that he’s completely medically cleared before we let him in the field again.” He replied starting up his car, as he shut his door the back seat opened up and Tobias sat his shit eating grinning self down, closing his door. Callen snorted at his response, sounding a little amused, but very frustrated.

              “So you’ve already made sure he has a job to come back to?” the other man asked curiously. “Because I was going to warn you in NCIS didn’t snatch him back into the fold you’d be competing with the alphabet soup.” Gibbs gripped the wheel of his car tightly, looking into his review mirror at Tobias and remembering all of the times he had threatened to entice Tony away from NCIS. There was no way in hell he was losing Tony again.

               “I’ve tried telling Gibbs that the FBI would love DiNutso, but he always brushes me off.” Tobias pipped in from the back seat, obviously able to hear what he was listening too. Callen’s laugh was loud and abrupt.

              “Don’t kill your Fed friend Gibbs.” He wheezed when he calmed a little. Then he cleared his throat. “I’m serious about addressing your boy’s self worth issues. He doesn’t get why his death affected so many people so deeply and that’s defiantly not a good thing.” Callen murmured. Gibbs made himself relax his grip on the steering wheel. He knew that they had a lot of things to work through when Tony was back home. And he promised himself that his SFA wouldn’t doubt how much he meant to anyone again when he was through working those things out.

               “This isn’t the first time Tobias has told me he’s steal DiNozzo given the chance, so you don’t have to worry about helping me hide his body. As for Tony, we’ll make sure to get how much he’s worth to us through his thick skull.” He promised, before hanging up so he could concentrate on the road. He’d make it to the airfield in less than ten minutes if he drove right. Tobias grunted in the back seat, and he looked into the rearview mirror.

                “DiNutso will be fine Jethro. He’s got a hard head, but a little encouragement from you will go a long way. I’ve seen how he put’s your opinion above all other’s. It’s why I knew I’d never really be able to get him away from NCIS. He’s had a hard on for you since I met him.” He assured him in his blunt way. Gibbs tried not to think about how much time he’d wasted with Tony by keeping his blinders on and sticking to his rules. He wouldn’t be making the same mistakes twice though. As soon as he could he’d let Tony know just where he wanted him to be.

               “Stop with the name calling Fornell. If I didn’t know better I’d think you had a hard on for him.” He taunted meanly. The other man looked away and Gibbs growled speeding up his car just a little faster than he normally would take it. Again with the blinders. “I don’t intend on letting him go, ever. So if you think you can wait around for seconds then I’d advise you to stay the hell away.” He growled out between gritted teeth. Tobias sighed.

              “Like I said Gibbs, I knew there was no way in hell I’d ever be able to steal him from under your nose. Let’s forget this part of the conversation happened shall we?” He replied, sounding uncomfortable. Gibbs wanted to punch him, but at this point he had no real claim over Tony. He’d have to fix that, and soon.

* * *

 

               Ducky watched over the two sleeping youngster’s as Callen made his call. He was pleased to hear that the nameless man had succeeded in making Jethro come to the airfield. Jethro’s presence, to have him waiting, would do Tony a wealth of good emotionally and psychologically. The young man’s earlier comments still rankled him, and reminded him that once young Anthony was back where he belonged he needed to have a talk with the young man’s father. He wasn’t going to jump to conclusion’s- that DiNozzo Senior had caused them all so much pain for nefarious reasons, until he had proof. And if he got proof to the tune of the results having been intentional. Well the other man wouldn’t get the chance to do it again. As the plane touched down he reached over and shook Abby. The young woman jumped awake, clutching at Tony and making him groan as he woke up.

             “Wha?” Tony slurred, his voice heavy with sleep, even as he tried to move and shield Abby if need be. Ducky resisted a grin at the sight the two of them made, a tangle of limbs, and even in the early waking moments with their eyes still cloudy with sleep both were ready to protect the other.  Tony’s reaction time was still on par with his pre-coma timing, which was good. The thought made him pause. Even now he was evaluating Tony, seeing if he would be able to return to the field. While it was looking good he needed to stop. Abby was right, he was too focused of the medical aspect, and hadn’t fully appreciated the fact that Tony was alive and well.

             “We’re landing. I thought I should wake you, sorry if I startled you.” He replied. He knew it would be several more hours until the reality of the day hit him, unlike Abby. Jethro should be prepared to have the young woman living in his house for a few days, at least until she found her emotional center once more. Tony blinked a couple times, before visibly relaxing and leaning to kiss the top of Abby’s head.

             “Calm down Bat girl. Ducky’s just trying to give us heart attacks so he can play hero and save our jumpy asses.” Tony quipped. She glared at Ducky before yawning and cuddling into him again, acting like she was going to fall back asleep. Then she huffed, sitting up with a groan like she didn’t want to. She shot Ducky another look and sighed, stretching out and making her shirt ride up her bully. Callen watched, a glint in his eyes and Tony shot him a glare, making him snort. Abby cracked her neck, before smacking her lips and sighing.

             “I knew you were an evil man Ducky. Not cool on scaring me.” She pouted, then falling back as the plane jerked as it touched down. Tony caught her and laughed at the look on her face. She gave the plane itself a baleful glare, not happy with all the sudden movement when she just wanted to go back to sleep. It had been a long day.

              “Easy there Sciuto. You don’t want to shake the living dead too much. He might get hungry for some brains.” Callen spoke up, his eyes glinting. Abby glared at him, but on almost if on cue Tony’s stomach rumbled, making Callen smirk. “See, it’s begun. Now he’s going to be moaning brains all night.” Tony rolled his eyes.

              “I’d so be the new style of Zombie. You know the runner, not the shambling type.” He claimed. Abby snorted, looking him over critically, before giggling a little. Tony looked at her baefully, but her giggles erupted into a full belly laugh. Everyone stared at her as she pulled away from Tony and pointed.

             “You’d make a horrible zombie. Only able to say brains. It would be hell.” She got out in between laughs. Tony rolled his eyes, but was secretly glad that she was laughing. She hadn’t been herself since she’d gotten here.

             “I’m glad you think so.” He muttered, acting the part of the wounded butt of a joke. She giggled even more, and he listened as the plane went through the tell tale depressurization.. Ducky clapped his hands after it was through, startling Abby into silence. She hiccupped in that aftermath and Tony poked her making her glare.

             “I apologize dear Abigail, but I think It might be prudent to depart, so we might feed Anthony before he starts craving the gray matter of those around him?” He suggested with a smirk and twinkling eyes. Abby nodded rapidly, getting up and stoically ignoring the hiccups she was experiencing.  Callen grabbed DiNozzo’s suits, knowing that once the other man saw Gibbs he wasn’t going to be thinking of his things. Kensei took up the front of the procession as the door opened, followed by Mallard, then DiNozzo, and Sciuto with him taking the rear.

           He knew the exact moment when DiNozzo spotted Gibbs. The recovering man froze, his mouth dropping open at the sight of the older man standing just in front of the stairs. No one spoke as Kensie and Mallard finished climbing down the stairs and moved off to the sighed. DiNozzo swallowed loudly a couple of times, before licking his lips nervously and slowly continuing down the stairs. He stopped at the bottom.

           “Boss?” He asked, his voice slightly meek, like he couldn't believe the other man was really there, and for him. Gibb’s closed the distance, hugging him tightly as Callen smirked from above. He slipped an arm around Sciuto as she made to join them, wanting Gibbs to have a chance to reassure himself that the man they had brought home was real. Then Gibb’s reached up and thwacked the back of his lost agent’s head. DiNozzo started laughing and his arms tightened around Gibbs.

             “What was that for?” He asked, a little whine in his voice, although they could tell it was a fake.

             “For not calling me first, and for thinking I wouldn’t be here when you landed. There was no way in hell I would let you come home to no one waiting for you DiNozzo.” He replied gruffly. Tony’s body language changed slightly, so he was pressed closer to the man he had followed to NCIS from Baltimore and Callen would bet he was smirking. He almost covered the young woman’s eyes in front of him, just to make her pissy that she’d miss the next part. DiNozzo had balls, and it seemed like he wasn’t going to wait for Jethro to make the first move.

             “Is that the only reason Bossman? Are you sure you didn’t miss me just a little?” DiNozzo purred, his voice husky and making Callen a little jealous of his friend. Gibbs didn’t know what he was going to be getting himself into, if the promises in that voice were anything to go by. He saw shock filter over his friend’s face at the sudden change in the atmosphere, then a smirk as he changed the position of his hands, moving them slightly lower. Callen’s pant’s tightened and he promised himself that he’d deal with that problem later.

              “It’s sure as hell not the only reason DiNozzo. And I missed you more than you can imagine.” Jethro replied, his voice husky. He upped the ante by pressing his body closer to the younger man’s and the moan his partner let out was almost pornographic. Abby squealed, breaking the moment as it looked like Jethro was going to kiss DiNozzo and Callen gave into the urge to growl. It was just getting to the good part. DiNozzo made to spring back from Gibbs like he’d been burned, but the older man kept a hold of him. “It’s only Abby.” He soothed, squeezing DiNozzo’s ass quickly before clearing his throat and looking serious, ignoring the squeak he caused.

              “We should head to my place. Fornell has men posted outside. Until we can clear this up I’m afraid you’re going to be a little overwhelmed with attention Tony.” Gibbs grunted, guiding the other man down the last step. DiNozzo willingly followed him, staying close to his side and Callen was glad that something was working out. Mallard smiled at the two men as they reached him and Abby ran down the stairs, glomping them both.

            “Do I get to watch if you two have hot sweaty man sex? And it’s about damned time Gibbs.” She babbled. Jethro looked pleasantly surprised at her demeanor and Callen would bet that this was the liveliest he’d seen her since the man in his arms had died. DiNozzo groaned, burying his face in Jethro’s neck making the other man look smug. Jethro shook his head, pulling DiNozzo closer to his body and dropping a kiss on the top of his head, which was a monumental cop out to the almost kiss that had been interrupted before it had gotten to happen.

            “Sorry Abs, but I defiantly not sharing him.” He replied, his voice sounding amused, but like he was making a point at the same time. The man who was standing in the shadows of Jethro’s car shifted, looking guilty and Callen raised an eyebrow. It seems there was a story there, because if he was right that was the Fed who had declared that he had tried to get DiNozzo in the FBI in the past. There was tension almost visible in the other man’s form. Callen decided he didn’t want to know as Abby whined and Gibbs maneuvered his cargo into the car- the passenger seat. The Fed got into the back seat, and everyone else piled in. Gibbs grabbed DiNozzo’s hand as he started his car and pulled out of the airfield. He really wasn’t going to waste his second chance.

            DiNozzo looked over at Gibbs, his face still red, but there was a smile there, and a peaceful look in his eyes. Gibbs had done the right thing by showing up and waiting for the other man. Callen could see DiNozzo relaxing and most of all he could see the look of acceptance in his eyes. Acceptance that someone cared for him, loved him. It was a step in the right direction. He saw DiNozzo squeeze Gibbs hand before leaning into his shoulder as they drove. And he noted that Gibbs was driving slower than his norm. The two men still had things to work out, things to talk about and reassure themselves about, but Callen thought that it would work out in the end.

           About half way there he heard DiNozzo slip off to sleep again. Gibbs looked at him fondly, before they could all see his eyes in the rearview mirror. Those blue eyes glinted as he took in the group, before they landed on Mallard. The good doctor wasn’t phase by the intense look he was getting, instead he looked to be amused by it.

           “How is he doing?” Gibbs demanded his voice quiet but sharp. Ducky smiled and looked at DiNozzo.

           “From my observations Anthony is in good enough condition to be cleared for desk duty. In another month I will feel comfortable enough to suggest he test to see if he can return to the field. It is miraculous how well he is doing to be frank. One would expect much more long term damage from the length of his coma.” He replied. Gibbs nodded as Abby snorted, poking the doctor in the side abruptly and glaring at him.

            “You had me scared about that. I knew Tony would be okay though, he’s like superman, invincible and everything. Nothing keeps him down, nothing.” She scolded. Ducky rolled his eyes as Gibbs smirked.

             “He’d not invincible Abs, but your right. Our Tony won’t let anything keep him down, he proved that when he had the plague.” He replied soothingly. Tony murmured, cuddling closer and Callen smirked.

            “So where are we all bunking?” He asked pointedly, looking at the young man who was slowly moving closer and closer to his friend in his sleep. DiNozzo was definably a cuddler, there was no missing that. Gibbs grinned tightly, his eyes sweeping over the three other people who would be invading his space. He was almost tempted to tell the team from LA to get a hotel room, because Abby might be talked into going home tomorrow night and then he’d have his house and tony to himself, but he bit back that urge.

             “Agent Kensei will have the guest bedroom with Abby, you’ll have the couch and DiNozzo’s bunking down in my room so I can keep an eye on him.” He replied finally. Abby snickered into her hand and Callen smirked at his old friend. He was sure that there wouldn’t be any sex with them in the house, but he had a feeling DiNozzo was about to find himself in his permanent new bed. Not that the other man would be complaining if his reaction in the jet’s steps was anything to go by. No one said anything about the arrangement though. In fact no one said anything until the car slowed and pulled into a driveway. Callen saw two men nod to Gibb’s before he shut the car off and reached over to shake DiNozzo. The other man yawned as he opened his eyes blearily.

           “Are we home Boss?” The younger man asked, before yawning again. Abby cooed from her spot and DiNozzo shot her a glare, only to stop as he noticed the gentle look Gibbs was giving him.

          “Yeah, We’re home Tony. Let’s get you fed and to bed. We have to be to work early.” He replied. DiNozzo’s grin was blinding just with that one simple sentence, and he almost dived out of the car and up the front stared. Ducky chuckled, as everyone else got out of the car at a much more sedate pace.

           “Letting him return to work so soon is the right decision Jethro. The longer we make him wait, the more he will second guess himself and his abilities.” Ducky assured him as they walked up towards the house. Gibbs chuckled, as the lights in his living room and kitchen popped on and he could hear the refrigerator open and Tony rummaging through the contents. As they entered the house the microwave popped on, as he heated his meal.

               “I know that Duck. You can’t keep him still for long anyway, and having him back where he belongs is the best choice all around.” He replied, before everyone scattered, to find food or bed. He was left with Fornell. The other man shifted, before piercing him with a sharp look. Gibbs returned the look twofold.

             “You better believe that you’re one lucky bastard Gibbs. And you better make sure that kid in there doesn’t find reason to make the switch to FBI. God knows why, but he loves you. I could see it in his face when you made your move at the jet. Don’t let it pass you by a second time. I’ll drop by MCRT tomorrow to see how everyone’s settling in and where the investigation is at.” He murmured, before turning on his heel and leaving.

            “Where am I sleeping Boss?” Tony’s voice suddenly asked from right behind him. Gibbs turned to see him leaning against the kitchen doorway. “And I’m not touching that pissing contest right now by the way.” The other man added with a grin. Gibbs couldn’t help but feel nervous at responding. They had almost kissed, and he planned on having tony in his bed, a place he hoped the younger man would never leave.

           “In my room, if it doesn’t bother you.” He replied softly. Tony’s grin unraveled the knots that had been forming, and then he was striding across the room, all long legs and too lean body. He got into Gibbs’ personal space, looking into his eyes intently. Then he pressed a tentative kiss to Gibbs’ lips and the older man har to restrain himself, only pressing just a tad bit closer as he returned the kiss. Then Tony pulled away.

           “Nope. I’m not bothered by sharing your bed.” He replied cockily, before strutting into the kitchen. Gibb’s laughed softly, before heading up to bed, trusting Tony to Follow, and the guards outside to have his six. Later, once Tony was finished eating, Gibbs found himself with am armful of a softly snoring man, who was pressed as close to his body as he could get. Not that it bothered him. The weight in his arms wasn’t familiar yet, but it would be, but the warmth assured him that this wasn’t some waking dream. He forced himself to close his eyes. Tomorrow was going to be one hell of a day, what with returning Tony to MCRT and all.


	8. Working It Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Looks around* The Bunnies have me cornered. Send Help?
> 
> Another update for my lovelies... Please Feed the bunnies?

              Waking up to someone in his arms, drooling on his shoulder was odd and snoring softly in his ear. He hadn’t actively let anyone share his bed overnight since his last ex-wife. All other encounter’s ended with the other person going home, leaving him to sleep in his bed on his own. As his groggy mind tried to figure out just what the hell was going on his bed partner snuffled in their sleep, moving closer and pressing a half hard length into his leg. So he was in bed with a male. Suddenly the events of the day before came rushing back, including Tony coming home and he wrapped his arms around the thinner man. Tony was alive, home and he wanted that something that Gibbs had always ignored when he had identified it. He wasn’t going to be an idiot this time though- there was no way in hell that he was going to let this rare second chance pass him by. He was never letting Tony out of his sight, or at least he wouldn't for a long time.

              Tony groaned as his grip tightened just enough to wake him, the hot air brushing past his neck reminding him that he was in bed with the man he had loved and lost. He resisted the urge to pin Tony to the bed and show him how much he had missed him physically. Rushing into this relationship wasn’t going to happen. He was going to prove to Tony that he was in this for the long haul, and fucking him senseless the first day he was home wouldn’t send that kind of message. He told his cock to calm the fuck down as Tony pressed an open mouth kiss to his neck, seemingly aware of where he was, though Gibbs doubted that would be the case for long. Tony's breathing still indicated that he was asleep, but what a good dream he must be having. the half hard length that was pressed against him filled out as Tony's hips bucked again, pressing his cock a little more firmly into the older man's legs. Gibbs prayed for the strength to resist the temptation as Tony moaned, low in his throat, his breath hot as it passed over his neck. He was close to giving into his baser urges. To damned close for wanting to take this slow in fact.

             “Mhh… Gibbs. Miss you.” Tony murmured, his voice thick with sleep. He kissed the younger man’s head in response to the sleepy statement, reminding himself firmly that he wasn't going to take advantage of him and Tony froze, his head shooting up. When their eyes connected he could see clear panic in his SFA’s eyes before it cleared and Tony grinned widely. “Hell, I didn’t dream up yesterday then?” He asked sheepishly. Gibbs shook his head, a smirk flitting over his lips. The smirk fell away as Tony levered himself up and kissed him. Unlike the gentle kiss last night that Tony had given him this one got heated, and fast. He had just maneuvered the younger man under him, despite all of his thoughts to take this slow as their mouths clashed all lips, teeth and tongue- with thier lower bodies coliding as cock rubbed against cock creating a dizzing sensation. It ended just as suddenly as  it had begun when Tony spied his clock. He pulled away with a groan and pant, closing his eyes and cursing to himself. Gibbs gathered his own senses, telling his cock to stand down as he watched the man in his bed.

           “You said we had work today. I want to be in there at my desk, if it’s still mine, before Probie and Kate get in. I want this to be a suprise, and i so want to see thier reactions.” He murmured, looking at him regretfully. Gibbs took a couple more calming breaths before nodding, and levering himself up. Tony caught his lips in another kiss, this one slow and filled with promises of what was to come, before parting with him again. “We’ll continue this later right?” The other man asked huskily. He nodded again, his blue eye blazing and he felt the reaction he caused in his SFA as the other man’s cock jumped and throbbed in the boxer’s he’d worn to bed, making him smirk knowingly as Tony blushed red. His eyes followed the blush down Tony's neck and chest, before looking up again.

            “Definatly will DiNozzo. Now come on. I doubt we’ll be getting out of here without an escort and your new friends from LA. If we want to get in when you want to we have to make sure they’re all ready. And your desk is where you left it. No one has quite cut it out to take your place on my team.” He replied, an order hidden in his voice. Tony grinned, before shimmying out from under him and heading over to the chair where his suits had been hung over. He looked back to the bed over his shoulder as he paused, his eyes sparkling as he did.

             “Is it okay if I steal the shower?” He asked, wiggling his eyebrows. Gibbs nodded, trying not to imagine the warm water caressing Tony’s body as he did. His cock throbbed almost painfully hard as Tony winked at him before heading into his bathroom. He laid back down for a moment. Taking things slow wasn’t going to be easy. It was going to be about as fucking hard as he was now, and DiNozzo wasn’t going to help it any if his behavior was any indication. Sighing he forced himself out of bed as the shower started and headed to the second bathroom with his clothes. He’d jump into the shower with Tony if he stayed any longer and he knew it. The longer he delayed, the less that sounded like a bad idea. Funny how that works out.

* * *

 

           Fifteen minutes, six cups of coffee and a car ride later and Tony was settling back into his desk, placing his things back where they belonged and everything. When Gibbs had handed him the bag full of the things he had on his desk before the incident he had wisely kept his mouth shut. He hadn’t made a wise crack about him keeping a dead man’s things or anything, because he was sure that somewhere in this house he had his wife and daughter’s belongings. There wasn’t too many people here yet, the sun was just barely peeking over the horizon and he knew that McGee and Kate would be a while yet before they got here. Or at least that’s what he assumed based on how he remembered them arriving before. He’d been reminded quite often in the past day that things change. And not always in a good way. The fact that his death had affected so many people adversly disturbed him. He had always assumed that he was replacable. The Token Cop on the team.

            Abby was down in her lab, catching up on what damage her replacement had done while she was in LA getting him. Or rather whatever damage she was convinced had been done in the time she was away from her babies anyways. When he’d left her she was playing music at a deafening level, bouncing around like her normal self with a stock pile of Caf-Pows to keep her going at her normal hypersonic speed. He’d been glad to see a slip of her Pre-Tony-Death self showing, and one look from Gibbs told him the other man was glad to see it too. He’d have to find out just how down Abby had been while he was presumed dead, preferably after this mess was taken care of and the Goth girl was well back into her normal habits. Her behavior had scared him in the last day.

           The two ride alongs from LA were sitting at a desk a cubicle over, working his case. And Gibbs was sitting at his desk, and kept shooting him smoldering looks that made his pants tighten to an almost uncomfortable level. He had a feeling the bossman wanted to take things slow, but after over five years of following him around looking for the slightest handout Tony wanted more. And he was going to take whatever he could coax out of the other man, as often as he could get it. He had no intention of ever letting him go, and considering he’d seen Gibbs at his worst he was sure he could handle anything the other man threw at him. He hummed to himself as he flicked his bobble head, then froze as there was a gasp. Looking up he saw McGee and Kate at the elevator, staring at him in shock and he grinned widely at her. Let the games begin. They both looked like they were seeing a ghost.

           “McGeek, Kitty-Kate, you’re both early. What’s going on?” He chirped, leaning back in his chair like there was nothing going on. He could see Gibbs covering a smirk at his action. Okay so this wasn’t a big welcome home prank, but it was good. McGee’s mouth opened and closed a couple times, and he shook his head, like if he did then he wouldn’t be seeing a dead man just sitting there. Kate looked over to Gibbs who shrugged, like there was nothing wrong with having Tony sitting at his desk. Kate shook her head sharply, just like McGee

          “What are you two waiting for, an invitation? We have cold cases- desks now!” Gibbs barked. The two agents moved in unison, their eyes darting back to Tony as they sat down, confusion and disbelief clear in their gazes. Tony snickered at their look, reaching to his desk for the pile of paper balls he’d made just after he and Gibbs had got in. He flicked one at Kate, who flinched as it hit her.  Tim shifted, opening his mouth again, before closing it hard.

          "This is another one of those dreams isn’t it? The one where nothing ever happened and Tony’s still with us. Buck up Todd, I thought you’d gotten over trying to pretend he wasn’t gone.” Kate muttered to herself, but it was loud enough that Tony could hear. His smirk transformed into a shit eating grin in seconds.

          “You dream of me Kate? Am I any good?” He taunted across the bull pen. She flushed red and glared at him, actually glared and not glanced like she was trying to ignore that he was there. He winked and he could see the fire in her eyes start burning brighter. He leaned back further in his chair waiting for it to erupt.

          “Not in that way DiNozzo. You’re dead. I saw you bleed out, I held you while you did and it wasn’t like with the plague. I couldn’t sit with you while you got better, because I could see what was happening. Then we had to bury you and I realized just how damned important you were. Of course I dream about it never happening, because let’s face it- without your juvenile antics the world is one hell of a bleak place. Is that what you wanted to hear?” She hissed, her voice sounding like she was distraught by his teasing. He almost felt bad. Tim’s eyes darted back and forth between them and to Gibbs who was watching interestedly.

           “Uh Kate… I don’t think this is a dream.” McGee murmured, half hesitantly- sounding like the green probie that Tony had worked hard to push out of his shell. He sure as hell hoped that McGee hadn't reverted back to how he had been when he had been declared dead. It had been hard work to get him to where he had been and while teasing McGoo was always fun he wasn't looking forward t ostarting at scratch.  Kate’s glare landed on him almost immediatly.

           “Sure you don’t McGee. You never think it’s a dream in my dreams.” She pointed out snarkily. Tony burst out in loud laughter, filling MCRT with it’s noise as Gibbs snorted, drawing his two younger agent’s attention.

            “Cut it out DiNozzo, or I’ll head slap you so hard you’ll fall asleep again for six more months.” He barked, and even though his tone was hard there was a joking and fond note in it that Tony just didn't remember. Tony stopped laughing abruptly, but pouted at Gibbs, before pointing to them.

           “But Probie and Kate think I’m a dream. This is so much better than what I thought would happen. I’m going to have so much blackmail, more than the thing which shall not be named that Kate doesn’t want ever to be shown to the world.” Tony whined. Gibbs rolled his eyes towards the ceiling. A throat clearing drew their attention again, and everyone looked to the Director, who was standing by the entrance to their little alcove looking amused at what was happening. She was a red head- and looked tough as Nails. Right up Gibb’s Ally, but Tony couldn’t find it in himself to worry that the other man’s attention would wander to her. The tension in the air when Gibbs looked up defiantly wasn’t of the type that two people who wanted to fuck would let off. Gibbs in particular was sending the back the fuck away from me and my own vibb. And there was defiantly a story to the mess..

           “As entertaining as this is I think we should focus on the matter at hand. Welcome back Agent DiNozzo. I trust you’re well? I must say you look good for a dead man.” She murmured. Tony examined her and looked at Gibbs, then laughed at the looks on their faces. He propped his feet on his desk and shrugged, even as Gibbs sent an exasperated look at him as he did. He resisted a grin, because any other day and Gibbs would be barking at him to get his feet of the desk and he knew it. Why not milk the whole back from the dead thing a little?

          “I have to say I’m appreciating being home Madame Director. And Gibbs didn’t tell me you were a red head. Explains sooo much. Anyways McGoo and Katty are having a Melinda Gordan moment. Or would that be an Allison Dubois moment? I keep mixing them up. Either way the two of them think I’m a dream. I’m enjoying the moment.” He replied lazily. He heard Callen chortle from over the divider and grinned wider, before looking at his two friends. Both of them had frozen in mid action and were pale. Kate inhaled shakily as she looked over.

           “Wait a second you’re really here DiNozzo?” She asked sharply, before her face went hard as he nodded. She stood up, shoving her chair backward and slamming her hands down on the table. “What the hell is going on here Tony? Are you why Abby and Ducky disappeared yesterday?” She hissed as if she was angry with him. He grinned smugly nodding again as Gibbs sighed in annoyance at their behaviour. McGee looked like he was going to pass out, and Tony hoped he did, just so he could have more ammo for him to use when this was all over.

         “I got shot, flatlined five times, fell into a coma for six months, had amnesia for three when I woke up and spent the next month and a half trying to figure out what the hell was going on and why my team hadn’t made an appearance. I didn’t know I’d been declared dead until yesterday- right before I Skyped Abby.” He drawled, looking at his nails. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kate pale, before she swung around, her glare fixing on their Director. He’d have to get the full story on Morrow’s transfer- he’d liked the man. He wasn’t so sure how he’d like this Sheppard, but eh, he had a lot of adjusting to do anyways. Why not throw in a new boss?

         “Did you know?” Kate hissed at her, her voice dark and angry. The Director glared back.

         “If I had known Agent DiNozzo would have been in Bethesda during his Coma, monitored by his doctors, instead of hidden away in LA declared dead.” She replied stiffly. Kate looked at her hard and Tony could see the cogs turning in her head, even before her gaze landed on him for a few moments.

         “Is DiNozzo in danger?” She asked, her voice serious. Gibbs cleared his throat, drawing her attention.

         “That’s what we’re trying to find out. We were able to trace payments from Eli David to his father.” He reported. Tony let his feet drop hard, because this was news for him. And it might be why everyone had gone commando in protecting him. Anything involving his dad and money was bad news. His father getting regular payments from someone during the time he was declared dead? It smelled rotten and made him sick to think about what the man who was paying his father was getting out of this whole thing. Kate’s face turned bright red.

           “Director Eli David of the Mossad? Ziva’s father, the woman who was placed on our team in a poor attempt at replacing Tony? Where is she?” She hissed. Tony paled at the mention on the Mossad. Those were some seriously dangerous people. Apparently he had much more to catch up on than he thought. Things around here had changed. The new director flushed at the accusation in Kate’s tone. She shifted.

          “Officer David has been placed on administrative leave due to her inaction in Agent DiNozzo’s case. She failed to report that he was still in fact alive and she is being dealt with. SecNav isn’t happy that this happened under his nose. Anything could have happened to agent DiNozzo while he was assumed to be dead.” She replied tightly. Tony noticed Gibbs standing up abruptly, a look of anger on his face and the Director turned to him.

          “Before you start in on me about compromising DiNozzo I had to report what I knew to both change DiNozzo’s status to living and get him reinstated as a NCIS agent. You didn’t give me much time to do it in either so I had to work fast and go to the top. I got an ass reaming over my failure to find this out sooner, but there was no problem in reinstating him. He’d on desk duty until he passes his physicals though.” She growled. Gibbs snorted, leaning on his desk.

         “David and DiNozzo senior are going to find out we know he’s alive and that he’s with us. What then? What if there is something more to what happened?” He asked, his voice sarcastic. She sighed and shook her head.

         “SecNav isn’t stupid Agent Gibbs. Officially word of him still living and his return to NCIS isn’t public. I’ve sent an interoffice memo with a gag order notice so that those who see him don’t talk about it out of house. There’s only so much I can do Jethro, especially with the notice I had before hand. His father is going to suspect he’s here either way when he finds out his son is no longer in the hospital he had him in, given the way he’s tried covering up that Agent DiNozzo is still alive.” She replied, her voice stiff. Gibbs grunted, before looking back at his team. McGee had gone from pale to furious in the course of their conversation.

          “I had a feeling something wasn’t right with her. But how could I have missed the payments though? Something like that would have stood out, especially if it involved DiNozzo Senior..” He heard his junior agent mutter. He turned his head as Callen’s head popped over the divider and he looked at the gathering of agents. There was a serious look on his face, but his eyes sparkled with amusement, and Gibbs thought he heard his friend’s female partner giggling. Callen looked at McGee after winking at him and moving his eyes towards DiNozzo who was looking lost and pissed off.

          "They’re not obvious and you have to do a little digging. When my team noticed DiNozzo we got to doing that digging- at whatever cost. When it became apparent that this wasn’t a sanctioned relocation or undercover OP we beefed up the security team we had assigned him, and then Sciuto and Mallard got there and I assumed Gibbs had found out his SFA was alive and kicking. Other than placing his daughter within NCIS we haven’t figured out what David is getting from helping DiNozzo Senior with pretending his son is dead.” He replied shortly, before looking at Gibbs again, a serious spark overtaking the playful note that had been in his eyes.

          “Hetty had Nell send over a list of people who took payments the day of and in the days following DiNozzo being declared dead. All paid from Eli David’s accounts. EMTs, Doctors, a City Coroner, a Funeral Director, some high level officials even. Considering the short amount of time they had to make these arrangements something smells off. It’s almost like David expected something to happen to one of your agents and had everything in place to ‘clean-up’ should it not happen like he wanted. With his daughter being conveniently in place to step into your team, I’m not liking the looks of this at all.” He informed him. Jenny’s face tightened more and Gibbs felt like punching something. Tony’s face hardened though and it looked like to pulled himself out of whatever shock induced slump he’d been in.

          “How Much?” He demanded of the tag along. Callen sighed, looking slightly regretful and Tony snorted. “Don’t. I’ve known just how much of a greedy self centered bastard my father is since I was a kid. Hell my mother even knew better then to trust him with anything. All of her estates were locked until I became an adult and if I so much as give him a penny from them even now they revert to my nearest relative on her side.” He replied, his voice taking a nasty note as he spoke of his father. Gibbs tried to hide the concern he felt over Tony’s reaction. They had brought him back to work way to soon and he knew it. There’s be bumps and mistakes, but nothing they couldn’t handle. Tony would have to see Psych as soon as possible though- because this was going to mess with his head whether he admitted it or not. Tony was where he needed to be there, working on his case.

         “We’re still not entirely sure. There’s been transfers to multiple accounts that we are still tracking, both your father’s and to accounts associated with him via business or medical expenses. It’s well over one million currently though.” He replied. Tony laughed, but it wasn’t a happy one. It was bitter and angry sounding.

          “Isn’t that just great. He fucks up with money all the time, but I almost die and he hits the gold mine. All he has to do is keep me dead?” He muttered. Kate looked over at him, worry clear on her face while McGee just looked angry. He’d exchanged fierce words with DiNozzo Senior at Tony’s Funeral- showcasing just how far he’d come in his self confidence. Finding out the man who had placed the blame of Tony’s ‘death’ on their feet had really been hiding his injured team mate from them was maddening. He was already making plans to deal with the other man. And it wouldn’t be nice either. All of that money he was getting from David would find a new home- not in his accounts, but he wasn’t sure of Tony’s financials right now, so maybe he’d set an account up in his name? that way tony could by all the designer clothing he wanted. Or whatever else the other man could think of and smirk while doing it considering where the money came from. In all reality the money would probably become evidence in this investigation, but it was nice to think about. Kate move from her desk and gave Tony a Gibb’s style head slap. He looked at her in shock, but she just smirked shaking her head.

          “Try not to feel sorry for yourself DiNozzo. I don’t understand everything yet, but we’ll take care of this. And you don’t need everyone throwing a pity party for you in the meantime. Get your head together so you can show them yourself why no one messes with our team.” She said pointedly before leaning over and hugging him. “That being said I’m glad you’re alive. And no I’m not going to repeat that.” She added with a grin. He smiled at her, the anger draining from his frame. The he laughed and leaned back into his chair and out of her arms. He bit back any comments that he could of made, shaking his head after a moment.

           “You’re absolutely right Kate. Why get mad when you can get even?” He asked her playfully. She nodded before looking at the others. The new guy was looking at her with an approving glint in his eyes. He was cute- but she didn’t think he was the type she was looking for. He had the wandering look about him. The one that said no matter how hard he tried to put down roots he was happiest when he wasn’t tied down to anything. The evaluation only took a second- and it was nothing new, but when he winked at her, the amusement flooding back into his eyes he reminded her of Tony. Well of Tony before this. She had no idea what to expect from the once dead NCIS agent now. She was worried about how this was going to affect Tony in the bitter end.

        And then her own anger, the temper she was trying to keep in check at least around Tony flared back into life. DiNozzo Senior was going to learn why messing with a NCIS was bad enough, but messing with one of theirs was worse. The MCRT team was like a family, although if she was reading Gibb’s look right Tony was more of the ‘Mommy’ than the surrogate brother or son. She had to resist snorting at that thought, and made note to let it out when the two men actually came out. It had the potential for a good amount of teasing. Gibb’s cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention to him again. He was staring at Tony hard, a possessive glint in his eyes.

          “What are you waiting for McGee, Todd? We have a case to solve. I want to know if DiNozzo’s safe or not, and I want to know it yesterday!” Gibbs suddenly barked. The playful atmosphere disappeared in seconds as Kate headed to her own desk and McGee looked at his computer screen. The new man laughed though.

          “I’ll send you guys copies of what we have. Hopefully with more eyes on this we can get it wrapped up quickly. Hetty’s itching to start making examples out of the ones who took bribes to fake DiNozzo’s deaths, and if we make that woman wait to long she’s liable to start breathing fire.” He replied, then grunted as the sound of flesh hitting clothed skin was heard. “Oww. Kensei.” He protested. Gibbs heard a feminine snort.

          “This isn’t a joke Callen, and you know Hetty would do worse if she could hear you.” The female NCIS agent scolded. Kate resisted a grin, again seeing Tony in the other NCIS agent. Maybe having a jokester in the group was a requirement of all good NCIS teams? But like with tony she could see that this Callen was a lot more than he let on. He was probably as good, if not better at undercover work, just by observing his control on his emotions. She stopped thinking of him abruptly. This wasn’t the time for comparisons; they needed to know what David’s angle in hiding Tony was alive. If David got angry at Tony’s return to NCIS then they had to be prepared. The director cleared her throat and Kate resisted the urge to ignore her. She had pushed for David’s acceptance.

         “As amusing as it is to have you here Agent Callen, I think I agree with Gibbs when he says you need to return to working on agent DiNozzo’s case. Heads are going to roll by the end of this, and I have no desire to be accused of fucking this up with lack of professionalism.” She hummed. The good mood evaporated in seconds and Callen looked at her hard. She didn’t back up and then he shrugged.

         “Your call then Director. But just so you know  Hetty’s three times as intimidating as you and she’s half your size.” He tossed back, before disappearing under the divider again. Kate resisted a laugh as her E-Mail beeped, notifying her that she had received a message with an attachment. She heard McGee’s do the same and got to work, studiously ignoring the Director who was glaring at the Wall. She heard Gibbs chuckle and grinned to herself, it have been a long time since her boss had shown any emotion other than anger. This was good.

          “I think you should get back to work on things in your end Jenny. As you can see my team has it well in hand.” Gibbs spoke, his voice strong, and defiantly amused. Kate risked a look up and saw the Director glare at Gibbs, before moving back towards the stairs. Tony was working on his computer. She noting he was typing slower than she remembered, and then she was reminded of his coma. There were lasting effects from Coma’s that long normally. And even though Tony seemed to be himself- the whole announcing he was alive by convincing them they were dreaming being a perfect example, something’s may never be the same. She pushed that thought out of her mind. Tony had survived the Plague, even with everything that could have gone wrong. A measly Coma was nothing compared with that. Or at least that’s what she told herself.  Tony had to be alright after the last year.

         “DiNozzo. You have an appointment with Dr. Pitt at 5pm in Ducky’s lab. Ducky called him in and he’s promised not to tell anyone until we’re sure that you’re not in danger.” Gibbs barked suddenly, looking up from his phone. Tony gave an exasperated moan, that was obviously fake and had Kate grinning.

         “More poking and prodding. That man loves to make a big deal out of nothing. I swear. Ducky’s already said my lungs are better than he expected just from the plague alone.” Tony whined. Gibbs pinned him with a look, and Kate watched interestedly. Gibbs was worried, which meant that there was something going on.

           “You were on a ventilator the first month of your coma DiNozzo.” Gibbs pointed out and Kate blanched. She should have expected his lungs to have been damaged more, considering the position of the bullet wound. But hearing he had been on the ventilator brought her back to the hospital, with him under the blue lights gasping for air. He hadn’t even had to have the assistance of a machine to breathe then. It brought the reality of DiNozzo Senior hiding Tony to crisp detail. The director was right, if his doctors didn’t know of his medical history they could have killed him very easily. She made herself look at the computer screen again.

            “I sent Dr. Mallard the copies of the medical files that DiNozzo accumulated under the false name his father had him listed as” Callen called from over the divider that separated Team Gibbs from the LA team. Gibbs nodded to himself and Kate saw Tim stiffen out of the corner of her eye again and figured that it was something else her team mate felt he should have noticed. She hadn’t even known he was looking into David, or Tony’s father though so she didn’t blame him, and she was sure that DiNozzo didn’t blame him either. Or at least she assumed that he didn’t. If he did then he would have to blame her to, because she hadn’t even tried anything in the way of what Tim had. Tony shook his head before going back to whatever he was working on and she saw Gibbs sit down himself. She started hacking into DiNozzo Senior’s E-Mails, hoping to find something to work with.


	9. Worry and Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: A long awaited update luvs... I'm sorry it's so short!

　　　　Anthony looked at the Doctor, his heart pounding. His son, who had no memory, was wandering LA alone? This was beyond bad- heads would roll when he was through with this hospital. It didn’t even cross his mind that Tony had gotten his memory back. He was sure he would have known, because Tony wouldn’t have tolerated him in the same room as him if he had. His son hated him, and with good reason considering how he raised him.

　　　　The Doctor’s regretful look only served to make him even angrier though. With the money Eli was shoveling into this place for Tony’s care this never should have happened- even if at this stage in Tony’s recovery he was given more freedom. His son should not have been able to leave the hospital premises without anyone not knowing for what looked to be twelve fucking hours. He slammed his hands into the desk in front of him.

　　　　“How?” He bit out- his mind already drawing up a law suit, and the numbers of private eyes that would look for his son for him. He couldn’t exactly go to the police and report Tony missing considering he’d had him declared dead. Anyone who saw him, who was in law enforcement, would know who he was and he’d be on a plane to NCIS and Gibbs in a heartbeat and he himself would be looking at jail time. If he already wasn’t.

　　　　He’d have to call Eli and give him a head’s up with what had happened, and what could happen very soon. His friend would make this place regret losing Tony, but it would be too late by then. Then his son with no memory would be surrounded by the people who had let him almost be killed. The Doctor shifted nervously under his glare.

　　　　“Mr. Paddington was here after you left yesterday. He had his check in and then the remaining time until midnight rounds was open to his use. Since he started walking again it’s normal for him not to be in his room so that didn’t raise any alarms. His drive to recover is amazing to tell you the truth- he’s come further than any of us hoped given the circumstances of his arrival here. I admit we were late with our midnight rounds and when it was noticed that he wasn’t anywhere in the building the alarm was sounded and we called for you Mr. DiNozzo. I’m sure he is fine, just exploring his surroundings. With his amnesia and his personality this was to be expected.” The Doctor spoke, his voice strong, but his words unsure. Anthony growled, before pulling out his phone. He hit the speed dial connected to Eli’s burn phone. He didn’t know everything his friend was getting out of helping him, but he needed his help now more than ever. And if Eli had anything riding on this then he would help.

　　　　“Tony’s missing. Has been for at least 16 hours.” He snapped into the phone as it was picked up. He heard Eli curse in Arabic, and the squeaking of a chair as the other man moved. He sounded more angry than concerned and that made Anthony’s hair stand on end. When he was getting the help he needed to make Tony well it hadn’t mattered what the other man was getting out of their arrangement. Now? Well this was his son, and while he may be a lot of things he loved Tony more than the stubborn boy would ever know. He only hoped informing Eli that Tony was missing wouldn’t put the amnesiac man in the danger that he was trying to prevent by faking his death.

　　　　“I will have my people look for him within the area of the hospital. You say your son is still amnesiac no? Well he cannot get too far without knowing who he is or without money. We will find him.” Eli rumbled. The phone shut off before Anthony could respond and he got a sick feeling in his gut. Eli wasn’t up to anything good, his voice had revealed that much. And whatever Eli was up to? He was part of it because he had happily accepted the other man’s money and help faking his son’s death. He ignored the director of the hospital and stood up. He had a feeling that he better find Tony before Eli’s ‘people’ did and that may mean going to the very people he was trying to hide his son from for help. He didn’t feel right about this situation, not one bit and that said something to him.

　　　　

* * *

　　　　

           Tony sighed from his seat, resisting the urge to pinch his nose to try and fight off the headache pounding away happily at his skull. His team was already watching him like a hawk and any movement that indicated he was less than alright would result in him getting sent home. And he knew it. He shouldn’t be bothered by that fact, but he was a damned capable agent. And he’d been helpless for almost a year. He wanted things to be normal again. Not being able to make it through the day? That would just show Gibbs that he wasn’t ready for work. And he did not want to sit this one out, he wanted to be there throughout the whole damned investigation. And he wanted to see the look on his father’s face when this all came crashing down on the old man. He wasn’t going to forgive him for faking his death, and keeping him away from his family here. He could have died alone and under a false name and only his father would have known the truth. He almost jumped as a cup of coffee was set down in front of him.

　　　　“Here, you haven’t had any since this morning and I don’t need you to get a caffeine withdrawal headache.” Gibbs murmured, his voice gruff, but his eyes gentle and knowing. Tony knew that he wasn’t getting a damned thing past the other man in that moment. He had expected that, with the feelings that the other man had revealed he had, but it stung a little to know that Gibbs knew he wasn’t at the top of his game. This was the plague all over again, and he knew it. He ignored the concerned look that Kate shot him as he sipped his coffee.

　　　　“Thanks Boss.” He muttered. Gibbs looked at him unimpressed, but he didn’t say anything about him going home and that was what Tony was most thankful for. He’d go insane if they decided that this was too much for him and he should sit on the sidelines. He needed to prove to himself that he was still cut out for this job, and that he could keep himself safe. Having others protect him was fine and dandy but he wasn’t weak.

　　　　“No problem DiNozzo. McGee do you have anything for us?” Gibbs replied, barking as he turned to the youngest agent on their team. McGee actually looked up at him annoyed, and Tony smirked inside. So little Timmy had grown some balls while he was taking a nap. That was a good thing in itself, he’d worked hard at drawing that defiance out and it would be a damned shame if it had all been in vain. 　

　　　“Not much Sir. I have ears open with intelligence, but I’m no closer to finding DaVid’s endgame then I was three hours ago.” He replied, his voice hard. Probie was pissed. Tony didn’t blame him- he was more than mad at the world in general right now. Gibbs sighed, sounding tired.

　　　　“Keep looking. I want to know why the hell that man went along with Senior when decided to pretend DiNozzo died on that damned rooftop.” He grunted. Tim snorted, before going back to his computer, if his hands punched the keyboard a little harder that he had been working before no one said a damned thing.

　　　　-------- ----------------- -------------

　　　　Eli David growled out as yet another one of his contacts reported back that Anthony DiNozzo aka Paddington wasn’t anywhere on their radar. That was not good news, because at 24 hours since the young man had disappeared from his room there were only two viable options as to what had happened to him. Either he was a John Doe in some intercity morgue, or he was back at NCIS. And from what he knew of Gibbs the other man would not rest until he knew everything he could involving in his agent’s so called death. It was imperative that he controlled this situation, and that he did so immediately. His daughter had to stay liaison at NCIS- the intell she provided was priceless and they couldn’t afford to lose that link.

　　　　“I authorize any force necessary to bring this situation back under control.” He finally spoke- not feeling guilty that he was essentially ordering his friend’s son’s death. And his friend? If they had to kill his son he would have an accident also- to tie up the loose end he represented. The line went dead and Eli turned off the phone- tossing it into the waste basket. Keeping DiNozzo alive had been good business before he represented a problem, but now he had to think of himself and what he needed to do to keep his interests safe.

　　　　------- -------- ------ ----- 　　　　

              DiNozzo Senior looked at the phone number in his hand. Anthony had been missing for almost three days, with nothing to show where he was. There were no records of his son being brought into a hospital, or being picked up by the local police. Nothing, and that either meant that David had double crossed him and his son was dead and would never be found- or it meant that NCIS had found him and he was ‘safe’. Well as safe as he could be with the people who had almost gotten him killed, and could still get him killed if they weren’t careful. He didn’t trust Eli as far as he could throw him, not if Anthony had messed his plans up in some way by finding his way home.

　　　　Thus why he had the phone number in his hand. He knew that he was going to be on Anthony’s list of people he hated again after this- even if his son hadn’t regained his memory. He had no doubt that the team his son had been on would explain their previous relationship. And the fact that he had faked his death. He pressed the call button and listened to the phone ring- willing himself not to hang up when Gibbs’ rough voice answered. 　

　　　“Agent Gibbs, This is Anthony DiNozzo Sr, and I have something to tell you.” He introduced himself, closing his eyes and hoping he was doing the right thing. Even if his son was dead DaVid would pay, and if he was alive? Well all the money he had made during his son’s ‘death’ was in trust for him so the feds couldn’t touch it when they arrested him for what he had done. And there was no way he wasn’t going to be arrested for what he had done in the last year. He didn’t care though, his son mattered more.

　　　　------------ --------

　　　　Jethro hung up the phone, a half bemused- half angry look on his face as he looked at the man who had been sharing his bed for the last couple of days. Tony was looking at him with a rather good poker face. He’d been listening in on the conversation he had just had with Tony’s father since the minute it had come in, and he hadn’t shown a single reaction. He reached over for Tony’s hand and the other man shrugged it off angrily.

　　　　“Three days missing before he calls in people he knows won’t kill me. You heard what he said about DaVid’s reaction to my departure from the hospital. He called here half believing I was dead already for god’s sake. How am I supposed to be react to this? Because I am telling you that I’m damned angry right now.” Tony finally burst out, running a hand through his hair in agitation and tugging on it sharply. Gibbs sighed, knowing that Tony’s reaction was perfectly normal, and while he was angry with the other mans father too he was more happy to know that he had to be on the look out. It was better to know that there was a danger still out there, then to just plain assume it. He reached out for Tony again, snagging his waist and pulling him into a hug this time.

　　　　“You can be as angry with him as you want to be Tony. You deserve to be pissed off with him after what he did. But he’s going to go to prison for a number of different offenses- you recorded his admission to faking your death. And he knew that admitting what he did was going to land him there. He realized that he was in to deep with DaVid at least.” He murmured into the stiff man’s hair. Tony snorted and shook his head sharply.

　　　　“He probably realized that if DaVid killed me than he was next. This is just another one of his ways to cover his ass and make sure he gets out of this mess alive.” He retorted, his voice filled with bitter ness. Jethro sighed, and held onto Tony just a little bit tighter. With what the other man had been through he had the right to be bitter. He more than deserved the choice to be angry with his father, and DaVid. And he was right. DiNozzo Senior would be in protective custody within the hour- after he reported the conversation that had just taken place anyways. The smiling bastard who called Tony his son was going to live through crossing DaVid. Or he would if Ziva’s father didn’t get to him in other ways. He sighed.

　　　　“We need to call this into SecNav.” He murmered. Tony nodded stiffly, pulling away once again.

　　　　“I know. There’s no way in hell DaVid didn’t plant bugs all over Senior’s person.” He replied stiffly. “And that means that DaVid knows that he’s told NCIS that I’m alive and his involvement. So if we don’t get to him first then Seniors a dead man walking.” Leroy nodded, slightly worried by the fact that Tony was completely emotionless now, after this was over they were going to have to talk. He picked up the office line and called Jenny.

　　　　Tony turned his back as he was connected to thier boss and he saw the other man’s fists clench. Jethro’s voice tightened as he explained the call he had just gotten, and as Jenny started making arrangements for protective custody for DiNozzo Senior and a detail to sit on Jethro’s house until everything was resolved. When the call ended Tony turned back to him, his face tight

. 　　　　“Whatever happens, has happened I know he doesn’t deserve to die. And that really erks me to admit just so you know. Make sure the bastard doesn’t die?” He asked, his voice cracking just the slightest before he turned to the door. “I’ll take that patrol that I’m sure Sheppard ordered for me back to the house. Suddenly I’m not sure I can work anymore today.” He threw over his shoulder, leaving the room and the building. Jethro sighed and rubbed his eyes. Tony wasn't alright, and he didn't know how to help him other than to work on catching the bastard that was a danger to him and keep his father alive.


	10. Of Hard Talks and Realizations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An Update for my Loves! See I promised you I'd be updating my stories more now that life has slowed down a little bit. I know this isn't as long as some of the chapters I post but deal with me please? ^.^

          Anthony Dinozzo Senior looked at the agents who had brought him in with narrowed eyes. They hadn’t said anything about his son when they arrested him and dragged him into MTAC. But he had seen his son’s team on the way in. And none of them looked happy. Hell the sweet goth girl looked like she wanted to stab him. So he could guess that they had been let into the secret of his son’s survival. His only question was why the hell weren’t they out there looking for Tony? He knew damned well that Eli could be dangerous to his boy. And the last he knew Tony was amnesiac, so it wasn’t like his son was out there trying to find  a way to contact them. The agent’s didn’t seemed phased by his look though- as they turned and left the room.  He wasn’t surprised when Gibbs came into the room, silent and intimidating. This was his son’s boss, and a man that Tony may have loved if he was right about his boy’s predilections based on several of the comments Tony had made at the hospital- however jokingly. The man sat down, looking at him hard as he did, before snorting, sounding disgusted.

  
         “So, did DaVid contact you about faking DiNizzio’s death or was that your idea all along?” The man finally broke the silence with one curt question. Anthony looked at him in disbelief. That was the first question out of the other man’s mouth after everything he had admitted over the phone? Fine he’d play the other man’s game. It wasn’t like he had anything to hide, or any place to be anytime soon. He knew he was facing serious jail time here over what he had done in the past year. And he wasn't going to receive any sort of pity from the man in front of him, not when he had involved his injured son in the mess he found himself in. A son that this man happened to care for.

  
          “Eli called me, just after I found out Tony was supposedly dead. I didn’t question just why you asshole’s thought my son was dead when Eli had him in a hospital in critical condition. Not when he was alive, and Eli was promising to keep him safe from his psycopathic son who had tried to kill him. All Eli told me I had to do was make sure NCIS continued thinking he was dead, by any means necessary. He promised to pay for Tony’s care and anything I may need or want. And he told me he had an agent tracking his son to neutralize him.” He replied. He watched the emotions play across Gibbs’ face. He knew now that Eli had to have been behind Tony’s near death experience, but back then he had been just too glad to have his son alive. Before Gibbs had the chance to speak he continued speaking himself. In for a penny in for a pound after all.

  
          “I did my part, made damned sure that none of you got to examine the ‘body’ before or after the funeral and then when I heard about his son’s death Tony had been in a coma for more than a week by then- and he didn't show any sign of waking up. He needed the medical care that Eli was paying for- care I couldn’t provide. So I let you people continue to think he was dead. He was going to recover and his job had almost gotten him killed. I figured it was a win-win situation. Eli got whatever he wanted out of helping us and my son got a chance to live. By the time I sensed something off with the situation I knew I couldn’t do anything about it. Not with Tony still in a coma, and then later not remembering a damned thing about his life. I did do something smart though. Every dime of the money Eli paid me I invested, and put under Tony’s name so that he would get something out of this mess. And then my son disappeared. And I knew that either your people would find him- or you would get a notification that a DNA match had been made to a corpse. Forgive me if I’m just trying to keep my child alive. Now why in the hell are you not out there looking for him?” He continued, spitting out the last part. Gibbs didn’t answer him though. He looked to the two way mirror, nodding and then the door opened again and his Tony was standing there, glaring at him hatefully but alive thank god.

  
          “They don’t need to look for me because I found a way to get to them pops.” Tony sneered, spitting the term for father out like a damned insult. Anthony went to stand- to hug his son or something but Gibbs slammed his fist down on the table startling him into staying still. Suddenly he was afraid of the gray haired Marine, because with the way he was looking at him the other man would be more than happy for him to have an accident in this room. Tony didn't make a noise though, staring at him with hard- unforgiving eyes that spoke more than anything. If he had thought Tony had hated him before than now the boy wouldn't mind to see him dead. He wondered just what the hell they had told his son to make him look at him like this, because this wasn't the joking man he'd seen at the hospital last.

  
          “Stay right where you are Mr. DiNozzio.” The marine ordered harshly and Anthony snorted, looking at the wall behind him, as if he couldn't stand the sight of him. Anthony felt like his heart was being ripped out of his chest, because he had enjoyed having a good relationship with his son since he had woken up. And now all of that was over because Tony knew about his past. Knew that he had faked his death and that there had been people out there mourning him. There had been someone to hurry up and get better for- even if they had thought he was dead.

  
         “God Senior. You made a deal that could have killed me because the medical team working on me? They had no Idea about my medical history! Hell that deal would have killed me if I hadn’t of remembered. You really don’t think DaVid would have let us just waltz out of that hospital when my recovery was complete do you? I’m a federal agent, there are too many people who would have recognized who I was when I got out into the general population and then the gig would have been up. I mean look at what his reaction to amnesic me running off- you were convinced I was a dead man walking. I don’t give a fuck that you put that blood money in my name either. You’re a greedy fucking bastard who values it more than other people’s lives. And don’t think DaVid wouldn’t have killed you to wrap up the loose ends of you knowing what he did.” Tony spat at him, before looking at Gibbs and nodding tightly. Anthony saw something in between the two men  then, before Gibbs nodded back.

  
           “If you’ve said you peace DiNozzio then I suggest that you get back to work. I still have some questions for Senior about what he knows about DaVid.” Gibbs rumbled, and Tony nodded, leaving the room without another word or looking back at his father. There was such a sense of finality in that move- like Junior was washing his hands of him for good in that one move. Anthony slumped in his chair. Tony actually remembered everything. Funny how the thought had never crossed his mind. Tony had been amnesiac so long he had just assumed that it was permanent, he'd been all to happy to assume that in fact.

  
          “I’ve really fucked up this time huh?” He finally muttered, looking up at the man he supposed was his son-in-law now. Gibbs snorted, giving him a look that clearly said what he was thinking. That he was a damned idiot who was just saying the obvious. Gibbs opened a folder, looking down, not even bothering to respond verbally.

  
          “Did DaVid ever mentioned why he wanted you to continue the ruse that DiNozzio had been killed, beyond citing that it would protect him from his son?” Gibbs asked firmly and Anthony sighed. So this was how this was going to go now? He was only here for the information he could give then pertaining to his son’s case. And there it was. His son was a victim, and he had helped make him one. He shook his head, he really didn't know what his old friend got out of helping him fake Tony's death the way that he had. And now that he thought of that it bothered him, because in the back of his mind he knew just how Eli operated. And he had played right into it.

  
          “No. Beyond calling to check in on how my son was recovering, after his son’s death he never mentioned revealing Tony was alive or even keeping it quiet. I was the one who advocated letting my amnesiac child  start a new life. And he supported that decision. Look Gibbs you have to understand Eli and I have been friends for years. I had no reason to think that he would hurt me or my child.” He responded, trying to make the other man see his side. He had just been trying to protect Tony. This man out of everyone should understand that right? Gibbs grimanced, looking up at him for the first time since Tony had walked out of the room- pity clear in his eyes for a moment- giving him some hope that he had gotten through.

  
           “A man like DaVid doesn’t just shell out millions of dollars for no reason Senior. He had you and my agent right where he wanted you. Where he could control Tony, and you through him. Tell me Senior, has DaVid been giving you hints as to where to do your business?” He shot back gruffly. Anthony felt sick to his stomach. Eli had given him several friendly tips that had been quite profitable. He nodded unable to speak, and Gibbs slid a notepad and pen over to him, the hard look back in his eyes and all pity gone from existence- just like it had never existed. And Anthony had to wonder if it had just been another tactic. His life seemed full of those now.

  
          “Write them all down, along with what the hell happened the day of the shooting and everything else that followed.” He was ordered shortly. And he took ahold of the offered items numbly. What the hell had he gotten himself into here? One thing was sure- this went beyond covering up the fact that his son was alive now. He started writing, and didn’t stop even as he heard the other man get up, and then leave the room. Leaving him to think about just what he had done when he had helped cover up what Eli had done in faking his son’s death, and in what he had done by accepting Eli’s tips and hints. He was going to jail for a long time if he was right.


End file.
